RE: Damon Hill against 80MPH speed limit
Discussion
http://news.sky.com/story/955334/damon-hill-speaks...
I see his point, valid argument however I comfortably drove between 80-100(depending on traffic) all the way to GWFOS and back and usually try to on any motorway journey. My response to what Hill said is that you need to take another test to prove that you're competent enough to drive at or over the 70mph speed limit. Too many times do you see people going up to 75 and hitting the brakes and slowing down and then going back up, hitting the brakes and then slowing down again, they have no control in their feet!
I see his point, valid argument however I comfortably drove between 80-100(depending on traffic) all the way to GWFOS and back and usually try to on any motorway journey. My response to what Hill said is that you need to take another test to prove that you're competent enough to drive at or over the 70mph speed limit. Too many times do you see people going up to 75 and hitting the brakes and slowing down and then going back up, hitting the brakes and then slowing down again, they have no control in their feet!
t V6GTA said:
I vote we have 2 types of licences, stage 1 and stage 2. Stage 2 allows you to drive in the fast lane up to 90.
While I like this idea in theory (obv 'cos I'm certain I'd have a Stage 2 licence, 'cos I'm ace, me), in practice it would be pretty hairy. The speed differentials between traffic would become higher, and that's not a good thing. Better* to confine all goods vehicles to Lane 1, with no overtaking; Lanes 2 and 3 for cars with a minimum speed of 60 or 70 and a max of 90 or 100. That should help keep the slowcoaches and middle lane cruisers off the motorway network.
*Better may not be an entirely serious choice of word.
Beefmeister said:
Turbocharger said:
Here's a simple set of rules that would work in all traffic conditions:
- 90mph in lane 1 (the current "slow" lane)
- 80mph in lane 2
- 70mph in lane 3 (nearest the central reservation)
- STRICTLY no undertaking
When the road's empty, do 90. As traffic builds, everything slows down and differential speeds reduce.
Buh?- 90mph in lane 1 (the current "slow" lane)
- 80mph in lane 2
- 70mph in lane 3 (nearest the central reservation)
- STRICTLY no undertaking
When the road's empty, do 90. As traffic builds, everything slows down and differential speeds reduce.
So completely reverse the way things are at the moment? That makes no sense at all i'm afraid. 70/80/90 in lanes 1/2/3, yes maybe.
The French seem to manage fine with 130km/h limits (basically 80mph). Are we to think the French drive better than the British. 
Edit to add: and not many of them seem to drive faster. However, coming back from France yesterday, you would be lucky to find someone driving below 80mph on the M20.
Edit to add: and not many of them seem to drive faster. However, coming back from France yesterday, you would be lucky to find someone driving below 80mph on the M20.
TheHeretic said:
ajb101 said:
Driving in France is an absolute dream... wind it right up to a buck-twen'e watch the countryside pass you by, overtake the occasional car... oh and spot 1 maybe 2 police cars all the way to Chamonix and back.
Bliss.
And yet their accident rates are higher than the UK. Bliss.
TheHeretic said:
Killboy said:
Yes, but look what I said: The limit is higher in France, but people actually drive faster in the UK (my experience from this last weekend). From Le Mans to Calais, I sat at 80-85mph. If I was overtaken 5 times in the 200 odd miles it would have been all. I was overtaken by twice that leaving the Eurotunnel in the 50mph zone while doing 65
I'm not sure what your point is? If you raise the limit people will slow down? If you raise the limit in the UK, French people will speed up? What? This is all a massive generalisation, so not to be taken as concrete, just my view. My view is more people speed in the UK than France, so comparing accident rates between the two at 70 vs 80mph is slightly skew. Also, from what I understand, most fatalities are not on the actual highways, but on A/B roads (head on collisions, hitting solid objects, etc).
TheHeretic said:
So most fatalities are lower speed? So making people better at road awareness, distances between cars, forward thinking, positioning, and so on, would be far better solution than upping a speed limit? Glad you agree with Mr Hill.
Nope, I think the highway speed limit would have little impact on highway fatalities. I however would support the lowering of the speed limit in urban areas like London. Not sure if posted already, but here's the Sniff Petrol perpective on this... 
http://sniffpetrol.com/2012/07/03/damonstoppedinte...
http://sniffpetrol.com/2012/07/03/damonstoppedinte...
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