mmarshall

I understand what you are saying (and I don't necessarily diagree with it), but that's a big part of what the problem is here in America. The states are determined to enforce posted limits (or at least, speeds that are reasonably-close to them), while a significant part of the driving-public is just as determined to break them. One side (with some justification) claims that slower speeds are necessary for safety, while the other side says (also with some justification) that higher speeds are safe if traffic maintains a constant-flow.

I'm afraid that, as long as both sides are not willing to change their views a little, that we are going to continue to be stuck with this ongoing problem.... and we'll still be talking about it for years to come.

syzygy

Yes, it's not a time of my life that I'm necessarily proud of. I was younger back then (18-22 roughly constituted the age range within which I received all of my speeding tickets) and relatively less mature.

Looking back, what frightened me the most was how I used to rationalize my criminal behavior. I used think "well, as long as I maintain an inter-car distance of 2 seconds between my car and the car in front of me and there aren't any adverse weather conditions (rain), it's perfectly reasonable to go 10-15 MPH over the speed limit on major interstate highways." I realized that many officers tend to allow a "grace range" of up to 10 MPH over the legal speed limit, and I selfishly exploited this. My conception of an acceptable speed limit shifted to (legal speed limit + 10), and I'd think to myself "if cops allow 10 MPH over the speed limit, what harm - morally speaking - is an extra 5 MPH?"

I'm not quite so sure why my view on traffic laws has changed so drastically over the last couple of years. I suppose I had somewhat of an epiphany when I forced myself to weigh the marginal benefits of speeding against the potential costs to other innocent bystanders, and I realized that my behavior could no longer be justified. I strictly drive at the speed limit these days. At most, I may find myself accidentally going anywhere from 1-3 MPH over the limit, usually as a result of terrain changes (going from a level surface to slightly downhill, for example).

I think some of the most recent responses are rather telling. This is clearly a polarizing issue and people have wildly different opinions on what is acceptable.

mmarshall

Be careful. Depending on who it is you are flipping-off, you can only get away with that so many times. You don't know who you could possibly be dealing with.....anybody from a decrepit old grandma to a Navy SEAL. People in my part of the country have been killed by road-rage incidents. They thought they were tough, and suddenly they met somebody who was a whole lot tougher.

Corey140

Mike, the speed limit is not enforced too much in the Atlanta metro highways. Main issue is they don't have cutouts like on 495 and 95 to sit and catch people. They have to sit on the shoulder or exit ramps. I know of the insurance studies say we are the fastest drivers in the US .

I drive pretty fast here and I can count on my hands for the whole week that I see a state trooper or DPS officer on the highway here. Usually, you have to watch out for the county or local police departments but if you know the area, they can't catch you either.

Another thing in GA, points dont start until you are 15 mph over the limit hence they won't come after you on the interstates unless you are flying above 75 or 80. Plenty of times at my old job when I worked the overnight shift and I'm driving home, speed limit is 65 mph and I'm going 75 to 80 and I see the red dot hit me and they haven't pulled out on me .

syzygy

Here's a hypothetical scenario. Let's say we're on a 2 lane highway with a posted legal speed limit of 60 MPH. Let's say traffic in the fast lane is going at 75-79 MPH and traffic in the slow lane is going at 70 MPH.

If I were to find myself in this situation, I would stay in the slow lane and go 70 MPH, making sure that I maintain a sufficiently large distance between the cars in front of and behind my car.

Fortunately I've never found myself in this position. Traffic in the slow lane of every highway I have ever driven on tends to go at exactly the posted legal speed limit. Nevertheless, I've thought about this possibility.

Do the benefits of driving the speed limit (10 MPH slower than the flow of traffic) outweigh the costs of people behind you (in the slow lane) angrily changing lanes to get around you? Probably not.

mmarshall

A great post.....and I thank you for your candidness. You've learned some wise judgement.

It is indeed a controversial issue. But I've found, over the years (and was generally the case even at age 16, over 40 years ago, when I first started driving), that there's just no substitute for common-sense.


You don't have to nail the limit right on the head, though, all the time...that may be carrying it to extremes. But if you stay within 5-10 MPH of them, in most cases (except for snow, ice, etc.... and extreme road-congestion), you'll not only pretty-much avoid tickets but probably also be reasonable for road-conditions.

FrankReynoldsCPA

Lately i've been slowing it down a bit on the freeway, mainly in hopes of better mileage. Running on the open interstate, I used to do 85-90, with 75 being the limit in Utah(now it's 80 in some areas). Now if I'm out on the freeway, i stick to 70-75 in the slow lane. Doesn't seem to have changed my mileage much however.

I tried an experiment and did 55 the whole way home to see my parents over fall break. I was ready to shoot myself by the time I made it home.

I find it ironic that now that I have a car with double the horsepower of my previous one, I drive slower.

muhbuhtuh

happens to me all. the. time. AHHAJGSFAHJSFG it makes me so angry. if you want to drive the speed limit stay in the right lane!!

mmarshall

Often, traffic on urban interstates is so congested that it precludes any real speeding, anyway.

Perhaps, perhaps not. I can't say, and won't speculate. But, in general, the highest posted-limits are out West, particularly West Texas and Montana. (New Mexico, BTW, generally has the highest death-rate per mile)


No, and they probably won't come after you if they see somebody near you doing 85 or 90. They'll go after the guy playing Tony Stewart, hoping to get him for not only speed but (probably) reckless-driving as well.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

The road theme aside, it is the rudeness and lack of consideration that many people feel they are entitled to do as they feel. They see the speed limit sign of XX so regardless of lane, that is what they do. People who are passing are law breakers and in that little moment of "justice" these drivers feel they are maintaining the "law" by hindering them.

anthrax144

Yup, that's one of the two scenarios. The thing is, they are actually breaking the law as well by hindering traffic. "Keep Right Except to Pass" is also a requirement (although police NEVER enforce it.) The other scenario, and I feel the reason there are so many accidents on the highways, is people are just completely oblivious to the fact that there are other cars on the road. They get into their cars and think it's time to "tune out". When they decide to change lanes, usually at the last minute, they are caught off guard by the car in their blind spot because they haven't checked their mirrors in the last 10 minutes. These are the same people that drive with their turn signal on for miles on end. No amount of flashing headlights or honking horns gets their attention because they are in la-la land.

lamar411

I think my biggest pet peeve is when i'm in the fast lane minding my business when someones gets in my line to pass the slowpoke in front of them. Well, hammer down man just pass him. Hate that so much.

FrankReynoldsCPA

Take a crap or get off the toilet, I always say(generally in not such nice terms).

When I pull out to pass, the pedal hits the floor, always. Passing is to be done quickly and smoothly.

Kamikaze2b

You are forgetting the very important "revenue generation" factor. In today's economy tickets for mostly BS traffic ofenses are a godsend for cash strapped communities.

NorCal510

Bravo to the author who wrote this article!! They are right on! Funny how cops are actually handing out tickets now for slow drivers or people going below the 65mph in the left lane!

If people who drive "slow" in the left lane get out of the way, you wouldn't see people speeding in the right lanes, cuz they we wouldn't have to pass them!