80mph speed limit??? good or bad??

I'm all for an increase. There is a line from the film "Gumball Rally" where the Cobra team talk about freeway speed limits.

"55mph is boring"

"it's safe"

"it's slow enough to make you think your being safe"

Or something like that and I tend to agree that it is boring unless in the bus.

 

My first reaction was yeah, great idea but then thinking about it...
There will be more accidents, every survey agrees that.
Faster speeds do use up more fuel, that's agreed.
Faster journey times? Assuming +10mph did equate to the average speed of a journey (which it don't), an extra 30miles in 3 hours of motorway driving...

I'd prefer some effort put into keeping traffic on motorways rolling. They're getting clever on the M4 doing that speed limit thing to spread the cars out (closer cars are together the more likely they are to fall into a stop/start pattern).

i find the green baiting a bit weird. We're all aware of the issues these days arent we? Modern cars capable of 150mph is kinda redundant if you don't do track days. We don't want to kill people, fuel is expensive, pollution aint fun blah blah...

I'd be happier if the minister did some real work and and got smart about the roads and made them more capable of sustained progress with our road tax pounds..

Cheers
s

 

At higher speeds you are bound to get more fatal accidents, which are what speed limits are there to stop.

People say that modern cars can still be safe at higher speeds these days, but not all cars are modern and peoples reaction times don't improve with their cars.

 

Let's wait for the stats on the deaths in 3 years time. Not only am I interested in stats on how many died as a result of a 10mph higher limit on the Motorways, I'm also interested in seeing how many die as a result to stepping out into a road thinking nothing was coming only to be hit and killed by a silent car running on electric power.

I would hazzard a guess that for every 1 person dying of the increased motorway speed, at least 50 will die from being hit by an electric car. And the more folk conned into buying electric cars, the higher the death rate will be (not to mention the extra power station polution they'll cause). Seriously, silent cars will prove a real problem.

Personally, I don't think we'll see any difference at all in the nation's driving habits when the limit increases to 80. If there's any change, it'll be so slight that it'll bearly register. If the stats said 'evidence indicates that not one person died as a result of driving at an extra 10mph' I wouldn't be surprised at all.

Higher speed usually equals higher concentration.

And as for the USA 55mph limit, I've always seen that as a bit of a joke. Think of all the powerful motors over there. What's the point of all the power when you're not allowed to use it? I'm amazed the VW bus wasn't so much more popular over there.

 

Research suggests electric cars can get 40% closer than ICE'd cars before you hear them. Hopefully we'd still be able to hear/see them in the remaining 60%.

Hailfrank, what was it the Green Cross Code man said?

 

i think its good ... not that i can get anywhere near that in the van

 

I think its long overdue, unchanged since 1965, when the stopping distances were based on a Ford Anglia with drum brakes.

I generally disregard the speed limit as I'm a member of the Daytime Motorway Cruisers TDI club and therefore have to go everywhere at 80mph+, with a 6 speed gearbox I still average 50mpg even when driving enthusiastically. I've got work to do

All this talk of increasing road deaths, driving a car will always be a risk, I'd favour a motorway entitlement on everyones licence, a test maybe taken 12 months after passing the initial driving test, testing lane discipline, etiquette, driving close to commercial vehicles, and some common sense.

I'd like to see more enforcement on ******* poor driving on the motorways, slow middle lane hoggers, not using the nearside lane, and misuse of the hard shoulder, theres too much focus on those speeding but driving perfectly well.

 

Daft idea. It's a ploy to get everyone to spend more money on fuel. And i've got drums all round too. And I don't like going fast. You can't make me. And lets not forget, it's a speed limit not a target :moon:

 

Its a smoke screen to get peoples minds occupied with discussing it whilst they slip somthing more contoversial in under the smoke

 

I've got a hire car for 3 months for my 150 mile round trip, i think cruise control is set at 90-95mph lol.

In my bus, 60 top whack!!!

 

I think there are fors and againsts with this but having driven in germany i think it will work as those who like to drive like idiots can hopefully get it all out there system before entering areas where children play and feel they have now had there fix and cut accidents in urban areas but on the other hand will it cause more motorway accidents? i personally think the money could be better spent else where as the roads are not safe at moment with out speeding everyone up and leaving roads in the same condition.