Speed Kills?

Over the last decade, Texas has raised speed limits on lots of roads, and especialy on Rural interstates (now 85 MPH).

So, documentaries like that are not all pissing in the wind.

 

simple!
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Now listen why would any company (City.State) decide to cut revenues. Police don't have quotas, they have performance metrics
Everyone knows speed kills and everyone who has alcohol in their system is looking for a way to move to "vehicular manslauter" (sarcasm implied)
A 1964 Mustang or 1959 Impala with 4 drum brakes and no seat belts, and a steel dashboard CAN NOT BE COMPARED to any car (pick a brand) with 4 wheel disk, with basic ABS, seatbelts, basic 2 air bags, door impact bars, crumple zones ( don't even consider more advanced versions)

Yet the limits have not changed. As the video shows even the civil engineering science has evolved, with divided highways, better sightlines, limited access roads and more.

Go figure, numbers don't lie but ***** (and beancounters) can figure.

Part of the force don't Protect and Serve, they are revenue agents that can often be replaced by photo radar
It is easier to fine someone for driving over the speed limit than to prosecute someone for stealing

 

The number of German Police I have seen on the Autobahn (not including accidents) in 23 years, I can count on both hands.

 

That looks like a pretty frustrating stretch of road in the video. It's all about government control over the people.

 

"Sir do you know why I pulled you over?"
Driver: 'Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah, did you see my video !"

Actually it is about saving idiots from themselves who have no regard for others or the law.

 

I will have to agree with you on many levels. But I have to wonder what the reason for having a speed limit of 30mph on a six lane divided road with limited access.

 

That is something we all ask ourselves sir at one time or another and is a legitimate question/concern. I think the speed limit imposed has a lot to do with the percentage of serious accidents on a specific stretch of road where drivers can be distracted by the fantastic scenery.

The only other sincere comment I can add is that I want all drivers to make it to their destination safely. Even though I currently have no children I will never forget the tears and expression on my parents faces when I had my motorcycle accident and how it effected them. Living on ones own terms is great but as you grow older hopefully you will understand that we would be lost without the love of our family. I drive with my loved ones always in my mind.

Kinda rambled on there but hopefully my point was expressed.

 

OK, there are a number of simple and complex factors that go into how and why speed limits are set. As discussed on other threads, some states and some localities do use speed laws punitively for revenue (see Texas laws working to mitigate that in their smaller cities, etc.). The video is Canadian, so I do not know how they might do things, but...

In the USA, on State and Interstate Highways, and in most (if not all) states, traffic engineers set speed limits using the guidelines established by the NHTSA. The Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) notes 6 conditions a jurisdiction should use to set speed limits. They are:
1. The "85th Percentile" speed of free-flowing traffic, rounded up to the nearest 5mph increment. This is derived from monitoring a roadway (and each varying section of that roadway) at least every 5 years, and whenever there is a significant change to the roadway. The speed of each vehicle is recorded, and the speed at which 85% of the traffic is going or less is the "85th percentile" speed. That speed, rounded up, is the most prominent way you get the speed limits you see. It relies on the logic that most drivers are driving reasonably, that a minority are not, and that 85% would fall into the reasonable category
2. Road characteristics- The video has a good point when they note the speed limit on their open roadway is the same as the city segment shown. If the traffic authority believes the 85% speed is too high, they can factor in the presence of view restrictions, road camber, the number of driveways, and other factors to set the limit
3. Speed pace - this deals with the manner in which the dispersal of traffic is tracked; e.g., if almost all cars are driving at or near the 85% speed or higher, there may be a rationale to establish a lower speed limit to push speeds down (this would be a factor in combination with the last item noted in most instances)
4. Roadside development - the presence, density and usage of buildings fronting the roadway
5. Parking practices - this is the presence of parking, the type of parking (angled versus curb vs center median) and the density and view restrictions caused by parked vehicles
6. Reported collisions - this is usually the reason speed limits are lowered; many times, people will call for lower limits after a fatal crash, and traffic engineers have to fight against popular sentiment

These factors are not part of the maximum speed limit laws in your state, nor do they affect the universal "safe speed" laws. The max speed laws have moved up and down for a variety of reasons, such as saving fuel, lowering the frequency of high speed collisions, etc. The general trend right now is that these are going up, but not by as much as a lot of folks might want. The advent of intelligent roadways and vehicles might see an increase, since the safety of those cars would be much higher (or so is thought). There is a move to base speed limits on what is termed "operating speeds" but that would be a much longer and more mundane discussion.

The safe speed laws mean that, no matter what the speed limit is posted, you still have the responsibility to drive at a safe speed. For instance, if the posted speed is 65mph, but it is too foggy to see ten feet, driving 65mph will get you a citation (if the cop can find you, which they most likely do after you crash due to the fog...). Heavy rain and snow are other common factors used to cite for speeding lower than the posted limit.

In short, the police have very little to do with any speed limit creation or change. Traffic engineers do, and then the police use their data to support enforcement. You have the right to ensure they do so lawfully, and within the letter and intent of the laws in this area.

Bob H

 

Bingo!!

 

Or, more often, where there are visual obstructions or poor highway construction or maintenance, ...
... and it's a better "bottom line" for the budget to lower speed limits (raising revenue) than spending money to *fix the intersection*.


There's a corner in Alexandria on Route 1, coming off the bridge, where the road changes from asphalt to concrete for the turn.
Sure, concrete may require less repaving, especially where the tires are clawing at it for grip.
But bumping from asphalt onto concrete for a *TURN* means a reduction in traction precisely when you need it.

So .... lower the speed limit.

There's several places along Route 1 north of Old Town where the road is asphalt, but the intersection is concrete.

They're obviously not thinking safety. They're thinking "low upkeep cost".

This, in a county where the annual car taxes are *five times* what I was paying in Taxachusetts.

But this is also the same area that implemented "H.O.T. lanes" ... as a way to add tolls to the freeway.

"Somebody on our side .... isn't."

 

Another valid argument, kudos. I doubt there is a 'specific cause' but more of a "chain of events" if I may. Increased speed, imo, leads to a heightened sense of ones surrounding. It could possibly be just 'driver error'.

Good topic.

 

+1,000
THANK YOU FOR POSTING!

 

Not quite sure I understand this method.
Then if everyone drives slightly lower than the limit it would eventually become zero, as it continually reduces by 85%.

 

No, they do linear studies of the operating speeds, and also of the variance of speeds (which is the real problem in many instances- some drive 75, some drive 45, and it is the difference in speeds that causes the conflict. There are minimum speed laws in most states for most roadways, although they are much less often enforced. People have an amazing capacity for self interest, and usually drive at a speed that, under normal conditions, feels "safe" to them. Some people have poor self-perception, and they are usually in the 15% above the magic mark. A few are far below, but they are usually the elderly or terrified, and aren't as frequent. There is inexorable pressure to both raise and lower speed limits on quite a number of roadways, and conflicting pressures to do so. That is why the field is so exotic at times in re how to set the speed for enforcement.

Last note, in California, as in many states, the local police receive almost no financial return to write tickets. The CHP gets much of its funding from registration money, and the courts receive theirs from fines and forfeitures (as you know if you get a ticket, most of what you pay is a forfeiture above the fine amount). Local police benefit by a portion of the fine that goes into a general state fund to offset training costs, but local coffers are not filled that way. I know some states, and some localities, differ, though.

 

Realized I hadn't necessarily answered the question- if everyone starts driving a little slower, you'll see the speed limit go down, but only 5 mph at a time, and usually not more than once every decade or so (they do traffic speed surveys about every 5 years, and tend to leave things alone unless there have been significant changes to the roadway). If the speed limit is 50mph, it would take 20-30 years to get it to 40mph. Theoretically, you are correct. Drivers, though, would defeat any effort to get it there because they will simply want to get where they are going and drive at a speed they see as beneficial in that pursuit.