How fast do you drive?

Maintenance/Repairs
61

@fodaddy

So you are saying we do not need speed limits?

I feel that a law is a law, however You are comparing an old obscure law with a law that applies to driving which is a privilege, when you are breaking the law speeding, you are endangering me and many others on the road. If you take a bath in your house between october and march in the state of indiana, you may be breaking the law, however you are not likely to kill, injure, or maim somebody.

A common misconception still exists that driving on our nation’s roads and highways is a right. No, driving a car is not a right, its a privilege.

Have we forgotten how many people are killed in car wrecks every year due to negligent driving?

The problem is that while driving is a privilege not a right, the legal system is complacent with offenders. Is there any excuse that should get someone accused of vehicular manslaughter off easy? Especially if that is excuse is an addiction problem like being an alcoholic. The real problem is that people are self centered and feel invincible. They think that bad things happen to other people, not them. They think that they are always in control, and that they can do horrific, irresponsible, and negligible things without being accountable. Then, come car wreck time, people are amazed, dismayed, heartbroken, and completely taken off guard.

It is frustrating! Getting a license, insurance, purchasing a vehicle and being allowed to operate it on state funded roads should be something that only upstanding citizens and law abiding, respectful citizens are allowed to do. If you are exercising, your right to drive by engaging in things you shouldn’t be, even for a split second, shame on you. Slow down, keep your eyes on the road, and pay attention to what you are doing. All other things can wait.

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@WhereisRick

Actually I’m just making a point that blanket policies across very different subjects just tend to cause more trouble than they’re worth and more often that not, just lead to more and more bureaucracy, Common sense would likely prevail if someone was charged with taking a bath in December, assuming that was the only charge, I’m pretty sure the charges would be dropped by the court.

I agree that driving is a privilege, and that our standards for giving out that privilege are embarrassingly low. And I think that things like proper lane discipline should be more rigorously enforced. But at the same time, I’m a lot more concerned about the person going 60 MPH in 65 MPH zone, where the prevailing traffic is moving along at 75-80 MPH than I am about the 20 other cars that the ones doing 75-80 MPH. The speed differential is what causes the problem.

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But at the same time, I'm a lot more concerned about the person going 60 MPH in 65 MPH zone, where the prevailing traffic is moving along at 75-80 MPH than I am about the 20 other cars that the ones doing 75-80 MPH. The speed differential is what causes the problem.

If everyone went the speed limit there would not be a very big differential of speed. That is the problem, speeders are creating too high of a speed differential, thats what the speed limit is for. Semi trucks cannot safely go 75-80mph, they can go 65mph safely, some are governed to 62mph.
Have you ever tried to stop vehicle that weighs 80k lbs combined?

Using the everyone else is speeding logic, we should be encouraging inner city youth to join their local street gangs because its safer in those rough neighborhoods if you are affiliated with a street gang because youth gangs play an important role in the local security landscape.

Fact is you are much more likey to survive a wreck at 55mph than 85mph.

By all means keep driving fast and keep dying (leading non-natural cause of death in the country). Faster cars equals greater likelihood of an accident involving injuries and fatalities. But I’m sure those extra few minutes saved were worth it.
If people went the speed limit there would not be a great speed differential.

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Canadian here - highway speed is usually 100 Kph, you see lots of people pushing 120 depending on the highway (you’ll see higher speeds on toll highways). I usually try to keep it under 100.

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If everyone went the speed limit there would not be a very big differential of speed

But in the real world, as you know, very few people drive the speed limit, they drive at what speed they deem acceptable to them, and it seems that most people are comfortable with driving around 75-80 MPH in most cases. That’s the will of the people.

That is the problem, speeders are creating too high of a speed differential, thats what the speed limit is for

If 90% of the people on the road are speeding, legality aside, fundamentally it’s the person doting along at significantly lower speeds that’s the creating the speed differential and hence is the one creating the problem, if that person were to maintain the prevailing speed, then the differential disappears. It’s not the majority’s job to cater to the minority, it’s the other way around.

Semi trucks cannot safely go 75-80mph, they can go 65mph safely, some are governed to 62mph.Have you ever tried to stop vehicle that weighs 80k lbs combined?

Can’t say I have. But I’m talking your average motorist not commercial drivers. I get that commercial vehicles often can’t keep up with fast moving traffic, I even referenced that in an earlier response.

By all means keep driving fast and keep dying (leading non-natural cause of death in the country). Faster cars equals greater likelihood of an accident involving injuries and fatalities. But I’m sure those extra few minutes saved were worth it.

You’re jumping to conclusions. All I’ve said is that I try to drive as fast as the prevailing traffic, sometimes that actually noticeably slower than the posted speed limit depending on conditions. There’s no one speed that’s appropriate for all conditions.

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@WheresRick

In regards to drunk drivers . . .

I seem to recall that senator ted kennedy got a lady killed while he was driving drunk, fled the scene, yet everything turned out fine for him at the time

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A mark, a yen, a buck or pound,
Money makes the world go round.

It works for speeders too, sometimes.

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I also seem to recall that George W Bush got off easy in his drinking days, because of who his father is

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Rick, a driver not keeping up with the flow of traffic creates turbulence just like a stone in a stream. And that turbulence causes accidents. And yes, traffic engineers use the word “turbulence”.

Excessive speed is dangerous. But so is not keeping up with the flow.

We’ve done this debate before.

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Why does this question always descend into moral outrage? I don’t worry about how fast others are going. If they are passing me, I keep right, If I am passing them I keep left, and if I see someone gaining on me in my mirror I move over before he has to brake. I made my living as a tractor trailer driver then school bus driver for over 50 years, If I got mad at bad drivers I would have had an ulcer or heart attack years ago. I don’t expect professional driving out of amateur drivers.

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Because I get tired of everyone being repeatedly lectured on this subject by Rick.
I admit however, that I should not let it bother me. Just a personal quirk I guess.

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By the time I made it back I see a number of people have already responded and more often than not, better than I probably could have done.

I was just trying to show that its not always safer to go with the flow, especially in a real truck. According to some people if everyone is going 100mph, I should also, which is non sense.

Rick, you need to slow down :wink: and take a moment to think about what people are saying not just knee jerk respond. Not everything is spelled out, most people probably give the reader the benefit of the doubt so they don’t have to type out paragraph after pararaph of detail.

But here it is: NOBODY IS SAYING A BUCKET TRUCK SHOULD STAY WITH THE FLOW OF CAR TRAFFIC. The bucket trucks around here appear to be operated by someone who realizes they should be in the far right lane doing 65. The issue is with the single car doing 65 in the far left (passing) lane when the majority (all) of traffic in those lanes is doing 80.

You want to go 65, stay far right and you may not have any problem (unless you travel outside Indiana to somewhere like Boston during rush hour when the traffic in the breakdown lane is doing 75).

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@WheresRick

“So im going down the interstate, the speed limit is 70mph, and I am going 70mph, and someone is going to shoot me?”

I have read some of your prior posts and based only on that I believe you might actually enjoy impeding traffic under the guise of being a law abiding citizen and acting as judge and jury. In case you’ve just crawled out from under a rock, there is a serious issue with road rage going on across the nation in many large metropolitan areas. If you do enjoy toying with people on the road, you should understand the risk you’re exposing yourself to. I personally want to avoid such encounters so I don’t put myself in situations that could expose me to the risk (like driving 64.9 mph in the fast lane because it is the “law”.

“Would that be justifiable in your mind, to get shot because I was obeying the law? I hope you don’t own any firearms, If you do I beg you to hand them over to a responsible adult and get professional help. There is no shame in admitting you have a problem”

You may want to take some of your own advice. This is over the top and I suggest you should be banned from this forum for such comments.

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TT, I wholeheartedly agree with your assessment. Great posts.

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If 90% of the people on the road are speeding, legality aside, fundamentally it's the person doting along at significantly lower speeds that's the creating the speed differential and hence is the one creating the problem, if that person were to maintain the prevailing speed, then the differential disappears. It's not the majority's job to cater to the minority, it's the other way around.

So if I live in a bad neighborhood and 55% of the people are dealing drugs does that mean its ok? They are the majority after all. Why do we have laws?

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@twinturbo

You may want to take some of your own advice. This is over the top and I suggest you should be banned from this forum for such comments.

Ahh yes. you don’t agree with me so lets ban me. You are the one who brought up me getting shot for obeying the law. Maybe your the one who needs to be banned.

Why are you in such a hurry? slow down.

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Rick, why are you so judgemental of everyone else? Why have you anointed yourself the absolute authority on how everyone else should drive? Why do you equate 5 mph over the posted limit to being a drug dealer?

My honest opinion is that if everyone started obeying the speed limit you’d find something else that everyone else does to complain about. I don’t think it’s really about speed. I think it’s really about a need to try to control everyone else. Good luck with that.

You posted in another of your threads about conflicts that you’ve had with other drivers. Keep it up and sooner or later you’re going to aggravate someone who’s really crazy. Numerous people have been attacked and even killed by using their cars to try to control the behaviors of everyone else on the road. Continue your behaviors and you just may find your name in a front page “road rage” article.

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@the same mountainbike

Consider what the world would be like if there were no traffic rules at all. Would people be able to travel by automobiles, buses and other vehicles on the roadways if there were no traffic regulations? The answer should be obvious to all rational members of the human species. Without basic rules, no matter how much some would like to avoid them or break them, there would be chaos. The fact that some people break the rules is quite clearly and obviously not sufficient to do away with the rules. The rules are needed for transportation to take place.

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The problem is people have a mob mentality, forget the law, everyone is speeding so will I. In the case of a flash mob looting a store, they are the majority, so its ok? Afterall you have a large group of many people that decided that the law against theft is not to be followed, so you have 80 people rush in a store and start looting, I guess they know best just like the speeders.

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Regardless of your philosophy, it is dangerous and wrong for you to try to control everyone else’s behaviors on the roads. And it’s wrong to pass judgment on others by declaring them equivalent to criminals because they’re trying to stay with the flow of traffic and you’re trying to interfere with it.

Equating the situation of everyone going 5-10 mph above the speed limit with the flow of traffic to having no traffic laws at all is not a rational comparison.

Rick, good luck trying to get the rest of the world to acquiesce to your wishes.