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[Magni]

It depends where obviously. I find the speed limits in France reasonable for example. In Japan, they are way too low. I've driven at 2x the speed limit on a highway and still been the slowest car on the road. Japanese speed limits are absurdly slow.

In the US, they could be a little bit higher (to match French levels).

 

[supernormal]

I've always thought speed limits were based off of mathematical calculations for speeds where car crashes won't be fatal. I.e. you won't kill a pedestrian if you were to hit them or you won't fly off a bridge if you hit the railing.

This is what I thought as well.

 

[Goro Majima]

Yep. Past about 50 mph, about each 5mph of speed costs you more and more. The amount of extra speed proportionate to your previous speed gets smaller and smaller for more and more gas.

The only time it's worth it to really push it to the speed limit is over looong distances, where there's actual hours or half hours to be saved. Most people speeding inside the city are at most saving maybe seconds, which can all be washed away if you catch a red light once you get off the highway. Not worth it.

It's why self driving cars could theoretically get you to work sooner while driving slower. Because they'd be able to maintain that speed constantly because self driving cars would never get into traffic jams on the highway.

I totally agree that in town speeders are just really bad at understanding math and it's frustrating to no end. Weaving in and out of lanes doesn't save you time.

Speeding on a multi-hour trip is a whole other ballgame.

 

[Icedburden]

Getting a drivers license is obscenely easy. Driver re-education should come before anything. Traffic offenses need to be harsher as well.

 

[Phu]

Michigan's gotta get its road quality situation sorted out before we should worry about bumping up the speed limit. Some areas are so fucking bad.

 

[shem935]

Depends on the highway. I've seen 55mph to 65mph. I'm almost positive I've seen a 70mph but never higher.

Speed limit where I drive is 75

 

[stlobus]

Michigan's gotta get its road quality situation sorted out before we should worry about bumping up the speed limit. Some areas are so fucking bad.

This so much. I-94 through Jackson County can be a fun game of dodging pot holes while staying in your lane.

 

[Woo-Fu]

Yes, they are way too low, but I almost never speed anymore. I've gotten too many speeding tickets over the years, the most ludicrous was being ticketed for going a mere 4 mph (yes, four, 4, 2+2, fucking ridiculous) over the limit (65 mph) on an interstate highway. I personally think they keep the limits low in most places to make it easy to hit their ticket quotas every month.

The reality of the situation is that "meeting ticket quotas" is easy to do regardless of the speed limit. Locally the police pull people over all the time in front of the schools which are lined up along a highway. There are flashing lights during the bus load/unload periods and plenty of signage yet people speed through there all the time and I always see idiots getting pulled over if I go through there at those times.

Like the school example most of the speed traps are there because of a history of people blitzing through small towns at highway speeds. They're not there to generate revenue, they're there to punish numbskulls who leave their common sense at home.

I think the math in the original article ignores the possibility of the 85% quota shifting as the upper limit is raised. It undoubtedly would. There are a not insignificant amount of people who are going to drive oh, say, 10-15 over the limit regardless of what the speed limit is which means you're still going to have traffic speed variability. Higher speeds requiring faster reaction times and longer breaking distances on the other hand aren't going to change.

There are other factors to consider as well, including but not limited to cars that can't be safely driven much faster than the current limit but still would be. I've got a 2003 4-cyl wrangler with fat mud tires on it that I drive now and then and I doubt it'll even go 80 except downhill and I wouldn't be comfortable driving it at those speeds. A wise person wouldn't take such a car on an 80 or higher limit road, but there should also be some legislation to make sure such vehicles aren't street-legal on those roadways.

tldr; I'm not sure improving safety is an ironclad reason to raise speed limits. There are a lot more variables than those presented in the linked article.

 

[bosseye]

I get the sense most "speed limits are too low" people don't realize just how much five extra miles impacts your breaking distance.

It was a genuine eye opener for me, the extra stopping distance is out of all proportion to the additional speed.

They also played that 'Dead Kid' safety advert that ran in the UK a few years ago which is quite a sobering advert, especially now I have kids of my own.

I've been done for speeding 3 times in my life so I obviously have a propensity to stray over the limit a little, but each time I find it a good reminder that you're piloting a seriously heavy chunk of metal at speed and the consequences can be massive.

I also got hit by a car in 2015 (knocked off my bike) by a car doing around 25mph give or take and it hurt. It really fucking hurt, and that sense of unstoppable, massive impact really stayed with me, even at what is seen to be a low speed. Luckily I had a helmet on, it was smashed up.

 

[Barzul]

This is one of the reason I love driving on Texas highways, the higher speed limits. It's always a joy when I visit. Speed limit in my state is 70mph, I'm usually doing 80mph and so are most drivers.

 

[zoukka]

I've been done for speeding 3 times in my life so I obviously have a propensity to stray over the limit a little, but each time I find it a good reminder that you're piloting a seriously heavy chunk of metal at speed and the consequences can be massive.

The fact that not every driver thinks this every day is scary and depressing.

 

[muu]

There's an annexation plan for some land north of where I live in the city limits. The hospital is expanding, they're adding housing. Currently there's a street that connects to the hospital whose speed limit is 25. Already people drive well beyond the speed limit here to the hospital, which pisses me off as a parent of a 3yr old. It's worse when you consider there's an elementary school very near by w/ a large play structure which is heavily used after school hours. If nothing is done, either people keep flying at 35-40 (or more as traffic gets heavier and everyone follows the next guy), and w/ the decent amount of foot traffic someone's going to inevitably get hurt.

I guess the biggest issue I see w/ rationale given in the article is that it's only assuming safety of those in traffic. Kinda makes sense this is someone from Michigan talking as there were literally no walkways in majority of the streets when I visited there. Traffic might flow better on the street if limits were raised, but how much more are you going to fuck up the kids you hit? The bikes? Or are we going to continue and follow the rationale that anyone not driving is a second class citizen and they should have been more careful? My uncle and aunt were run over by a reckless driver w/ multiple previous records and AFAIK the driver never saw a day in jail, likely due to the same mentality.

 

[WhiteRabbitEXE]

Depends on the highway. I've seen 55mph to 65mph. I'm almost positive I've seen a 70mph but never higher.

They can hit 75 here in AZ, but generally that's only when you're decently removed from large population areas and heavily used on-/off-ramps, so I almost never see above 65.

Though by state law you're generally fine on freeways if you stay below 85.

 

[Acerac]

Driving through rural America on a three-lane interstate, the limits I've seen are usually 70mph. But if you're not doing 80-85mph, you're not keeping up with traffic in those situations.

You know a law is a good one when literally everyone breaks it.

 

[ThisGuy]

I see people doing 80-85 on the highway all the time. That seems to be the normal speed limit. By law its 70. And its common to see someone driving 90-100.

 

[phaonaut]

I saw 3 potential accidents on the way to work this morning because people don't want to drive 55 on this particular section of the highway. I don't trust others to drive any safer at higher speeds.

 

[thelatestmodel]

I saw 3 potential accidents on the way to work this morning because people don't want to drive 55 on this particular section of the highway. I don't trust others to drive any safer at higher speeds.

Higher speed isn't the problem though.

 

[SS4Gogita]

Depends on the highway. I've seen 55mph to 65mph. I'm almost positive I've seen a 70mph but never higher.

There are a couple of stretches on I-4 connecting Tampa to Orlando that are 70mph.

 

[Nafai1123]

I saw 3 potential accidents on the way to work this morning because people don't want to drive 55 on this particular section of the highway. I don't trust others to drive any safer at higher speeds.

You're kind of implying that someone was forcing them to drive 55, which if so is the ultimate cause of those potential accidents.

 

[Jarth Mader]

The reality of the situation is that "meeting ticket quotas" is easy to do regardless of the speed limit. Locally the police pull people over all the time in front of the schools which are lined up along a highway. There are flashing lights during the bus load/unload periods and plenty of signage yet people speed through there all the time and I always see idiots getting pulled over if I go through there at those times.

Like the school example most of the speed traps are there because of a history of people blitzing through small towns at highway speeds. They're not there to generate revenue, they're there to punish numbskulls who leave their common sense at home.

I think the math in the original article ignores the possibility of the 85% quota shifting as the upper limit is raised. It undoubtedly would. There are a not insignificant amount of people who are going to drive oh, say, 10-15 over the limit regardless of what the speed limit is which means you're still going to have traffic speed variability. Higher speeds requiring faster reaction times and longer breaking distances on the other hand aren't going to change.

There are other factors to consider as well, including but not limited to cars that can't be safely driven much faster than the current limit but still would be. I've got a 2003 4-cyl wrangler with fat mud tires on it that I drive now and then and I doubt it'll even go 80 except downhill and I wouldn't be comfortable driving it at those speeds. A wise person wouldn't take such a car on an 80 or higher limit road, but there should also be some legislation to make sure such vehicles aren't street-legal on those roadways.

tldr; I'm not sure improving safety is an ironclad reason to raise speed limits. There are a lot more variables than those presented in the linked article.

There are certainly no school zones on interstate highways. Without quotas I can't really figure out why I got that ticket other than the cop was having a shitty day and decided they were going zero-tolerance. I've gotten warnings for 10 over before that. The inconsistency in enforcement makes speed limit laws seem like a cruel joke. I would absolutely love for speed limits to go up and enforcement to become appropriately strict, with camera systems to prevent dangerous, unnecessary chases.

 

[Talonz]

It's nice to see some focus on the slow drivers now because they are just as dangerous as the people doing 20mph over the speed limit.

 

[Goldrush]

Speed limits should be set at the safe speed for the person who's new in town driving around at night that needs to constantly glance at the GPS while the spouse carrying soft drinks in the passenger seat insists on carrying on a conversation and the kids in the back seats continuously demand attention.

 

[ZOONAMI]

I think in rural Mn max is 75mph, maybe only 70. Pretty rare really to see someone doing much over anywhere really. It's like no one is in a hurry around here, and the state troopers will legit get you even 5-10 over. Imo there should be lane set ups on multi lane rural freeways. Right lane 50-60, middle 60-70, left 70-90 (this would mean adding a lane to most rural freeways so it won't happen).

 

[darscot]

They have done plenty of studies on this, the best way to set speed limits is to remove them and monitor the flow of traffic. I can't remember the exact math but something like 85% of people will drive a specific speed. That is what the limit should be. People will not drive faster than posted limit when it is this limit. They drive at a speed they feel safe. This of course exclude the 15% that simple go to fast or too slow. This percentile also proves to be the safest speed. Surprise, surprise people actually drive safely, if you just leave them to do it.

 

[ZOONAMI]

They have done plenty of studies on this, the best way to set speed limits is to remove them and monitor the flow of traffic. I can't remember the exact math but something like 85% of people will drive a specific speed. That is what the limit should be. People will not drive faster than posted limit when it is this limit. They drive at a speed they feel safe. This of course exclude the 15% that simple go to fast or too slow. This percentile also proves to be the safest speed. Surprise, surprise people actually drive safely, if you just leave them to do it.

That's exactly the methodology in the OP.

Problem is the outlier cars. For example I would be perfectly comfortable cruising at about 120mph, but that's insane to most people. You kind of need like a left lane specifically designated for higher end cars, so dumbasses don't sit in it going 55. State patrol could still pull you over and check if your tires are rated for that kind of speed, and also brakes. Should be limited to cars that can stop at a reasonable distance at that speed.

Problem is this basically means adding a lane to most interstates, which is expensive. Could maybe sell it with job creation though.

 

[darscot]

That's exactly the methodology in the OP.

I plead guilty to not reading the entire post.

 

[BladeoftheImmortal]

I was going 90 most if the way when I went to north Carolina recently... Here's the rub, most people were passing me.

 

[Surface of Me]

There is a section of freeway on the way to work where people slow down to like 40 every god damned day for no fucking reason. There isnt construction, there isnt an accident, people just go slow there. It pisses me off to no end.

 

[TAJ]

Whatever you set the limit to, people will go 5-10 over it, sometimes more.
As long as police ignore drivers doing 5 over I don't see the problem.

 

[Kyuur]

Whatever you set the limit to, people will go 5-10 over it, sometimes more.
As long as police ignore drivers doing 5 over I don't see the problem.

The article literally states the opposite:

The answer lies in realizing that the speed limit really is just a number on a sign, and it has very little influence on how fast people drive. “Over the years, I’ve done many follow up studies after we raise or lower a speed limit,” Megge tells us. “Almost every time, the 85th percentile speed doesn’t change, or if it does, it’s by about 2 or 3 mph.”

As most honest drivers would probably concede, this means that if the speed limit on a highway decreases from 65 mph to 55 mph, most drivers will not drive 10 mph slower. But for the majority of drivers, the opposite is also true. If a survey team increases the speed limit by 10 mph, the speed of traffic will not shoot up 10 mph. It will stay around the same. Years of observing traffic has shown engineers that as long as a cop car is not in sight, most people simply drive at whatever speed they like.

 

[NoRéN]

I'm a "slow" driver. I follow posted speed limits. With that said, most of the time I'm the only one actually staying on the slow lanes. I always see idiots going at or under the speed limit in the left, fast lanes. I can't help but feel that slow drivers cause many accidents since people have to swerve around them or get bad and start cutting people off.

 

[Westbahnhof]

Any non-German people here who tried out autobahn in Germany?
Is the no speed limit thing overwhelming or just awesome?

As a guest in a German car, I realized it's not for me. 210km/h is too fucking much.
Maybe it's different if you are driving, but I thought it just felt uncomfortable.

 

[wihio]

In Montana, one of the largest and most sparsely populated states, it only makes sense for people to be able to drive faster. Going from one city to the next is often a 2+ hour affair, at speeds of 75 or 80. To go across the state takes many more hours. 200+ miles round trip for a weekend grocery shopping experience is common across the state.

On 2 lane highways, the limit is 70 in the day, 65 at night. This is close to reasonable, but 20 years ago, MT speed limits were "reasonable and prudent," meaning there was no real limit on the majority of highways, it was really up to you to deem what lived up to those words, and of course up to HP to make that call as well. New car and open road? Feel free to kick it up to 90 or 95.

Interstates are a different beast, especially recently. Initially the limit of 75 applied to all interstates (save for when they travel through cities, where they often drop to 60-70) but now there are many stretches of interstate that have 80 as the posted limit. As is the case anywhere, most drive over that limit. In MT, it seems there is a 10% rule-- you won't get a ticket if you don't go much over 10% higher than the posted limit. Still, there are plenty who will travel even faster than that.

What are the factors that should influence limits? Average travel distance, density of traffic, presence of controlled access and game fences, quality of highway/road, time of year, time of day, and finally something that I personally encounter--- quality/age of the vehicle. I have a new vehicle that I use for long distance travel, and it can easily handle cruise control notched off at 90 for a couple hours of flying across the plains, but many Montanans are rolling down the same roads in 20+ year old vehicles and big ass ranch trucks. Can there really be a single speed limit that makes sense for such a diversity of vehicles and conditions?

"Reasonable and prudent," a guideline that could morph depending on the conditions, season and vehicle type/age/quality, certainly makes sense to me. It worked well while enacted and was only dropped when the Feds threatened to stop pouring their dollars into the road infrastructure unless the state followed their speed limit guidelines. Too bad more don't see this adaptable method of policing roads as the more realistic option, especially considering how diverse our country is.

Now I must submit this post before I turn on the afterburners and pass the 1984 Ford with 3 different colored body panels, a missing tail light, and tires that are certainly not rated for 80 mph travel just so I am not stuck behind it when the tires blow! /s

edit: Long time Junior Member, just graduated and this is my first post as a Member!

 

[Sumio Mondo]

I tend to keep to the limit for normal roads and side roads, speed a little bit on the highway/motorway (just between 70-80). It pisses me off when I reach 40 roads and the drivers are all doing 30MPH (down hills, which is even more annoying).

Worst roads over here tend to be the ones that go from 40 down to 30, since cars behind you refuse to drop their weight back and instead drive up your arse, sometimes overtaking at around 45MPH when that's like 15MPH over the limit. Obviously these are never watched by coppers who would make easy tickets (road traffic department of the Police seem to have been gutted over here).

Literally everyone* speeds on the motorway. If you try going 70 you'll notice everyone else passing you.

*

Spoiler

With some exceptions

Not on the M60 they don't! Congestion on the roads is terrible in Greater Manchester now. The roads leading to Leeds (M62) is also shocking. Most of the time when I'm on the M60 it's 60MPH top in the rush hour in the "fast" lane.

 

[thelatestmodel]

There is a section of freeway on the way to work where people slow down to like 40 every god damned day for no fucking reason. There isnt construction, there isnt an accident, people just go slow there. It pisses me off to no end.

This explains why. About one minute in.

 

[low-G]

In my area I think speed limits are about spot on with a few exceptions, but people always exceed them.

One of the exceptions is a low traffic, super wide, single lane, perfectly flat, super straight, zero population area with 25mph limit where practically everyone goes 40mph and cops routinely use it to give some tickets.

 

[Takuan]

Typical limits in Toronto are 40km/h in residential/school zones, 60km/h on local roads, and 90-100 on highways. People generally drive 10-20 over the limit without an issue. You just have to watch your speed in residential areas, empty roads, and while going downhill.

I'm pretty sure if speed limits were raised, people would still drive 10-20 over the limit. That concerns me, given the jackasses I've seen on the road, so I'm fine with things as they are.

 

[dpunk3]

I loved in Germany that you could ONLY use the far left lane if you were passing, and big rigs were completely barred from using it unless otherwise stated. I appreciated the no speed limit in certain areas, but that being said Germans seem to have a much more rigorous driving test and drivers ed course than Americans from what my friend was explaining what he had to do (they intentionally fishtailed his car so he had to fix it, fixing hydroplaning at high speeds, etc).

 

[Falcs]

You Americans think you have it bad? Come drive down in Melbourne for a month and you'll appreciate your roads so much more. Down here EVERYONE drives 10km/h BELOW the speed limit. Mostly because they're too scared to get fined. We get fines for doing 3km/h over. We have cameras at every other intersection. There's no such thing as a "fast" lane, everyone just drives wherever the hell they want on the road, at whatever speed they want (as long as it's below limit).
Our 100km/h highways, people only get onto them at 80km/h even though they have a perfectly clear on-ramp.
It drives me insane.
I fricken love driving in the US.

 

[TyrantGuardian]

The lengths people will go to justify their will to break the law just to get a sense of being more "efficient" at the expense of safety...

The speed limits in Sweden at least are specifically set to make sure you or others have a minimal chance of dying in case of a generic accident. Of course, people value arriving 5 minutes earlier over survival because they think being in a car makes them immortal and all other drivers are simply obstacles they need to get around, so most still end up driving slightly over the speed limit with a minority going way over, but I guess that's a fact of life. The problem is when they end up tailgating you constantly because you are following the speed limit but they are too much of a pansy to actually overtake you on a one lane road. God damn scrubs.

 

[Polioliolio]

Most speed limits were all based off of stopping distances and relative safety of vehicles from the 1960s (tanks by modern standards) when most of the basis for our "modern" highway laws were devised, in reality most modern cars can stop in a fraction of the same distance and are designed to crumple to protect people, so there really should be some reassessment.

One of your reasons as quoted is that cars crumple now, so speeds should be higher. Haha fuck that! You're nutso if you think I feel better about higher speeds because even if accidents are higher, crumpling cars make death less likely. I don't wanna get crumpled!!

 

[Nafai1123]

I loved in Germany that you could ONLY use the far left lane if you were passing, and big rigs were completely barred from using it unless otherwise stated. I appreciated the no speed limit in certain areas, but that being said Germans seem to have a much more rigorous driving test and drivers ed course than Americans from what my friend was explaining what he had to do (they intentionally fishtailed his car so he had to fix it, fixing hydroplaning at high speeds, etc).

Every country should follow Germany's example, and yes the driving test for Americans needs to be much more rigorous.

The lengths people will go to justify their will to break the law just to get a sense of being more "efficient" at the expense of safety...

The speed limits in Sweden at least are specifically set to make sure you or others have a minimal chance of dying in case of a generic accident. Of course, people value arriving 5 minutes earlier over survival because they think being in a car makes them immortal and all other drivers are simply obstacles they need to get around, so most still end up driving slightly over the speed limit with a minority going way over, but I guess that's a fact of life. The problem is when they end up tailgating you constantly because you are following the speed limit but they are too much of a pansy to actually overtake you on a one lane road. God damn scrubs.

Bottom line: If a majority of drivers on the road are going faster than you, it's not your job to police them. It's your job to get out of their way to make the roads safer. If you are driving the speed limit in the fast lane, causing traffic to back up behind you, you are the primary danger on the road.

Single-lane roads are a different beast, but where I'm at there are usually turn-offs where slow traffic is supposed to allow others to pass (in addition to areas where you are allowed to pass).

 

[Robot Pants]

Yes. They need to be upped 15 mph across the board. Aside from neighborhoods and school zones

But this is a GAF thread on driving, and before I start to see red at some of these responses I'm just going to agree with the article, as it's something I've believed in for quite some time, and excuse myself from the rest of the thread

 

[Platinumstorm]

I think it's important for us to consider the environmental impact of speed limits. Changes in speed limits affect gas consumption. [I can't believe I'm making a post this short].

 

[Sanke__]

This man is a true hero

He needs his own holiday

 

[Greatest Ever]

Michigan's about to increase it to 75 mph from 70 on some highways which I love. When I lived there I constantly drove 80-85 in passing lanes and stayed right as much as possible. That was a younger me, but I was also never the fastest driver on any trip.

 

[Nafai1123]

I think it's important for us to consider the environmental impact of speed limits. Changes in speed limits affect gas consumption. [I can't believe I'm making a post this short].

While this is true, you must also account for the change in traffic density. Cars are less efficient at lower speeds too, so if driving at slower speeds causes traffic which results in stop and go or anything below 35mph, those environment impacts are irrelevant.

 

[CarbonFire]

You Americans think you have it bad? Come drive down in Melbourne for a month and you'll appreciate your roads so much more. Down here EVERYONE drives 10km/h BELOW the speed limit. Mostly because they're too scared to get fined. We get fines for doing 3km/h over. We have cameras at every other intersection. There's no such thing as a "fast" lane, everyone just drives wherever the hell they want on the road, at whatever speed they want (as long as it's below limit).
Our 100km/h highways, people only get onto them at 80km/h even though they have a perfectly clear on-ramp.
It drives me insane.
I fricken love driving in the US.

It could be worse. In a few places in the US (Midwest mostly), some people STOP on freeway on-ramps and wait for an opening.

But the rest of that does sound awful, especially coming from SoCal, where going the speed limit on the freeway is the exception rather than the rule.

When it's not bumper to bumper anyway

 

[hirokazu]

The conundrum to me is that people have a tendency to go over the speed limit. The unspoken rule in Australia (or at least New South Wales) is you can go up to 10km above the speed limit without getting into much trouble. But if you increase the speed limit, people are just gonna go over that, so at what point is the speed limit ideal?

The other issue is in areas with pedestrians, it's not really a good idea to increase the speed limit since it's already set to give adequate breaking distance if pedestrians step out unexpectedly.

Really though, reading this article just made me think we need to switch to autonomous cars quicker so we don't have this huge gap in speed between goody two shoes and speed demons.

 

[BarringGaffner]

Keep speed limits where they are until automated cars fully take over and we will all be safe.