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I woke up in pain, still suffering from the affects of my shunt on the M 1 , 4 weeks ago, and now I read this depressing info .....if I don't do 100 + miles a week on the A3/A316 it would be a shock. No seriously thanks for the info
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With a bit of luck (no chance) driving will be a slightly more relaxed in those areas. The average speed cameras have saved many lives and transformed driving habits in the hundreds of miles of them we have in Scotland. On motorways with speed limit gantries we have stealth fixed speed cameras between the gantries.Why do many people see a speed limit as a target to be exceeded? It rarely gets you anywhere quicker other than the next traffic queue, not that we have many of them up here. :-)
Last edited by: Old Navy on Tue 21 Mar 17 at 08:31
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I entirely agree ON but there's speeding and speeding. I used to speed quite excessively, never to the point of recklessness but always over the speed limit, on motorways and major roads, less so around town.
Nowadays I am a much more sensible (and better trained) driver but, as I'm sure you will remember, I recently got done on a speed camera. I was doing 36 on a fairly substantial and invitingly empty dual carriageway which I'd just turned on to, in an area I don't know and in clear and dry conditions. I've ended up with a speed awareness course but while there is no excuse, what I don't like about speed cameras is their inflexibility. I think a lot of drivers get caught like this, they aren't all speeding around aggressively they are simply a few mph over what is often an unnecessarily low (and "unnatural") speed limit. The limit may be quite appropriate at certain times of the day or week but is enforced 24 x 7 when cameras are involved.
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Being "off your patch" can be risky if you are not careful. In my area there are no off motorway fixed cameras. The locals know the camera van locations, the nearest to me is just after a school on a 30mph dual carriageway immediately after a 40 limit and out of sight around a bend. It catches many non locals. Brake lights ahead on the bend is a good indication the van is present! :-)
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>> The limit may be quite appropriate
>> at certain times of the day or week but is enforced 24 x 7 when
>> cameras are involved.
>>
I agree totally. Accident stats can be the catalyst though if speed camera installations were about anything more than revenue then variable limits would be introduced.
It should be about training, assessing attiitude as well as aptitude, empowering and informing, rather than dumbing down, bringing everyone down to the lowest common denominator.
And speed camera are a snapshot in time that do nothing to tackle drink, drugs, tiredness, phone use, bad maintenance, bald tyres etc, all much more important than 10 or 20%% either way in respect of speed.
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I used to drive, erm, quickly. But now I just waft about, never deliberately exceeding the speed limit. It's strangely relaxing, and as a bonus, I get exceptionally good mpg too.
Even outside the UK, where the traffic density is less of an issue, I don't bother caning anymore. Too many cameras, too much stress. Wafting is the future, for me anyway.
I absolutely agree that speed limits are a crude method of measuring safety. Some weather/traffic/vehicle conditions would lead a sensible driver to go slower than the posted limit at times, and other circumstances would suggest to the same driver that higher speeds would be perfectly safe, but I suppose allowing the latter would have to assume that everyone would make informed and sensible judgements at all times.
Don't suppose there is a simple answer.
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>> Don't suppose there is a simple answer.
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There is, just waft. It can be done in any car, it is an attitude thing. Let the uptight heart attack candidates contribute to speed taxation. :-)
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>> conditions would lead a sensible driver to go slower than the posted limit at times,
>> and other circumstances would suggest to the same driver that higher speeds would be perfectly safe, but I suppose allowing the latter would have to assume that everyone would make informed and sensible judgements at all times.
>>
That's the point - drivers should be educated and assessed for attitude to driving, attitude to risk, etc and then empowered to make decisions. That would stop the lemming mentality driving at the 32mph in a 30 whether it's dry and clear or icy and foggy, and it would also mean that higher limits could safely be imposed at certain times of day or night.
Take a 40 limit that reduced to 30 during school times (say 8-9am, 3-4:30pm) - drivers would naturally be more cautious during the 30 times as they would perceive a reason for it and the average speed during the school hours would no doubt reduce from probably 32/33 ish to maybe the mid 20s.
It should all be about individual responsibility rather than dumbing down.
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>> It should all be about individual responsibility rather than dumbing down.
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Unfortunately there is no cure for stupidity.
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>> >> It should all be about individual responsibility rather than dumbing down.
>> >>
>>
>> Unfortunately there is no cure for stupidity.
>>
Generally they, we don't let stupid people fly aircraft or operate on live beings, or work with firearms etc.
We shouldn't let stupid people drive cars, as I say we should be tested for attitude and intelligence and not simply be taught how to pass a test. A driving license should be an earned privilege like an educational qualification.
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It should be about taking personal responsibility but it'll never happen. If something doesn't fit as an entry on a spreadsheet now it no longer has validity. I'm with ON on this one, you can't resist the system however flawed/lumpy you may believe or even know it to be. The behaviour of the lowest common denominators of society inevitably drag the rest down to their levels.
Last edited by: Runfer D'Hills on Tue 21 Mar 17 at 10:31
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A3 A316. Average speed cameras etc - wotspur
