Barking mad Speed limits idea

[jaymdee]

Anyone read this load of old bollocks:

 

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/autoexpressnews/203270/speed_limit_cuts.html

 

So cars contribute say 10% of UK's carbon. UK contributes 2% of world carbon. Travelling slower would save maybe 30% carbon for maybe 50% of car users (ignoring that you'd be actually driving for twice as long!!) so this idea would save approx 0.03% of world carbon emissions. Big F'ing deal

 

Also, how would this be cheap as surely all cars would need to be properly converted to KPH and it would totally unenforceable. Besides, travelling at 40 on a motorway is when the traffic bunches up and accidents occur

[hob]

""A national speed limit of 50mph would make roads safer," said Griffith"

 

 

 

Well this is the letter I sent in:

 

 

Hi,

 

I am writing a publication for an online safety report, and would like a

question answered that has been bugging me for a while. Most government run

schemes to enforce road safety are the introduction of "speed cameras", one

such place is the motorway. One big question I have kept asking myself, and

which I have yet to answer in my publication is: Why are cars not

electronically limited to 70 miles per hour?

 

This is the maximum speed limit that is legal on the UK roads. If speeding

is of such great importance to saftey I can see no such reason that car

manufacturers should not be made to limit their cars to 70 mph. This would

save huge amounts of police/ambulances and fire crews that would otherwise

be chasing people speeding, surely if they can't speed then this would free

a huge amount of resources and would also save lives as well as provide a

better mpg return thus saving on pollution, it would also mean that people

could spend 100% attention on the road and their mirrors rather than

focusing on their car's speed, which they would no could now, not exceed the

speed limit.

 

I look forward to any comments you have,

 

Regards,

 

 

 

Reply was:

############################################

 

 

 

Thank you for your email of 17 October concerning speed limits. I am replying as I deal with speed limit policy.

 

 

 

To place a manufacturing restriction on the sale and use of cars that can exceed the speed limit, would require European agreement. If the UK were to introduce this type of restriction of its own accord, we would undoubtedly place an unfair trade restriction on many companies. This would isolate us further us from competing in an already highly competitive market, and trade would be affected.

 

 

 

In addition, drivers are quite within their rights to take their cars on private land (race tracks, for example) and race them. A speed restriction would undoubtedly curtail this particular pastime.

 

 

 

Ultimately, a car itself is not dangerous, however the manner in which the vehicle is used may be dangerous. To reduce vehicle performance will not decrease irresponsible and discourteous driving.

 

 

 

I hope this is helpful.

 

 

 

Ian Edwards

 

 

 

Even road safety know speeding isn't the major cause of accidents.

[garethr]

Why are cars not electronically limited to 70 miles per hour?

Talk about turkeys voting for Christmas

 

(and don't worry.... they are working on it)

[lust2luv]

Never understood this. Yeah, in terms of petrol consumption, not driving at excessive speed may give marginally better mpg, but in terms of CO2 you're producing negligably less going slower, and then you're driving for longer as a result, which cancels out any possible gain. Reducing speed limits would just increase congestion by definition (less capacity per hour on any given road), and cars stuck in traffic pollute far more CO2 into the atmosphere standing still or chugging along in 1st gear.

 

I don't get it?

 

[Nathman]

They talk about just converting the speed limits to KPH so they don't have to replace any existing signs, but have they not considered that every car on the road will have to have the speedo altered to reflect the change? Surely there must be a pretty big cost element there!

[hob]

Talk about turkeys voting for Christmas

 

(and don't worry.... they are working on it)

 

obviously they could be de-restricted, I was proving the point that the want us to speed They would never restrict top end, because the market for prestige cars would bottom out.

[garethr]

They would never restrict top end, because the market for prestige cars would bottom out.

You think?

http://www.its.leeds.ac.uk/projects/isa/

[SteveR]

Is this the same report/person who said travelling at 60mph means a car emits 16% less pollutants than one going at 70mph? Yes, but YOU'RE ALSO GOING 16% SLOWER SO WILL BE DRIVING THAT MUCH LONGER - completely negating the claimed 'saving'. A little brains goes a very short way... Complete feckwits!!

[Ian R]

Is this the same report/person who said travelling at 60mph means a car emits 16% less pollutants than one going at 70mph? Yes, but YOU'RE ALSO GOING 16% SLOWER SO WILL BE DRIVING THAT MUCH LONGER - completely negating the claimed 'saving'. A little brains goes a very short way... Complete feckwits!!

 

Steve we did the same sort of thing on the way back from the ring. We did mph to the kph signs

[SteveR]

Steve we did the same sort of thing on the way back from the ring. We did mph to the kph signs

 

Shhhhh

The old km/h to mp/h + 10% + 2mph trick eh? You sure that was me?