Everything about these self-driving cars defies 'safety'/
I saw 6 brand new Buicks at 75 mph going around a race track just 12 inches apart.
Their nuts.
The cars were empty - no drivers.
State Police Catch Tesla Driver on 'Auto Pilot' Driving While Sleeping on Interstate Highway
- Thread starter jcgriff2
- Start date
I saw 6 brand new Buicks at 75 mph going around a race track just 12 inches apart.
Their nuts.
The cars were empty - no drivers.
Decades ago, then again in 1999, Montana had NO daytime speed limit. Then the Feds reduced all Interstates to 55 mph. Dear God what were they thinking? Fuel conservation, which turned out to be <1% over ~30 years. It amounted to nothing.
Yes, Texas has some toll roads with 85 mph limits.
A group of us would go out to Montana every year after the Feds repealed the 55 mph speed limit and rent high-performance cars with no governors and blow by Montana State Troopers at 200+ mph!
The Feds intervened again and somehow forced Montana to place a limit of 80 mph daytime. If a cop stopped you, the fine was $5 cash - not for speeding, either -- for "wasting energy".
They say no one pays attention to the 80 mph Montana limit, especially the cops.
Since the speed limit has returned, the car accident rate in Montana has increased - caused by those going <200 mph in the left lane probably!
I got my 1999 Lincoln Continental, 4.6L 32V V8 Intech Engine (similar to Cadillac Northstar) in 2007 up to 134 mph on I-10 West going from Phoenix to Palm Springs (350 mile trip) through the Imperial Valley desert.
They should just get rid of the speed limits on Interstate Highways, State Turnpikes and Parkways.
britechguy
Well-known member
Sorry, but no. There's a disaster not even waiting to happen. Ask anyone who lives very near most interstates that are not "in the middle of nowhere."
You complain about test cars being on a test track "too close" to each other, well I've been on the interstate going 70+ MPH when the racers trying to see if they can hit 100 MPH in traffic come blowing through. There would be nothing that could, or would, stop this lunacy if there were no speed limits as then one couldn't "get caught" on the easiest thing to "get caught" for.
You and yours have perfectly lovely tracks and select states where there are roads where what you want can be indulged, and safely. That's not how it is in most of the country or on most interstate highways.
I've done a lot of cross-country driving. IMO, no one pays attention to any speed limit on any Interstate or highway. Many don't pay attention to any speed limit on any road - even in school zones.
I also remember back in the day flying along at 90MPH and who would come up behind me? A Greyhound bus!
Sorry, but yes. I agree with jcgriff2. Your anecdotal experiences are just that, anecdotal. They are exceptions and exceptions don't make the rule. You cannot seriously believe those racer's attitudes would be different if no speed limit, do you? Or if a more restrictive limit? In fact, if they dropped the speed limit to 70mph, for example, those speeders may be distracted by constantly looking behind them for "Smokey" instead of watching the road ahead
No posted speed limits does not, in any way, mean drivers are allowed to drive carelessly or recklessly. Nor does it mean they cannot be ticketed for careless or reckless driving, or for speeding. If the current "conditions" do not warrant or support higher speeds, then they must slow down or face significant fines.
As noted above, the German autobahn allows unlimited speeds. But that is "IF" conditions permit. In many areas, there are indeed, posted limits. And the fines are very hefty if violated. I note even a Bugatti cannot outrun RF or the Autobahnpolizei in the sky. Not to mention the Autobahnpolizei have some of the fastest police cars on the planet AND proper, continual, high-speed training.
Also, they have some of the most strict vehicle safety regulations AND inspections in Germany too. You don't typically get off with a "warning" if your taillight is out. Your wallet is going to take a lesson-learning hit.
So of course, they cannot just pull down the speed limit signs and park their police cruisers.
Other laws (that are already on the books) must be aggressively enforced. For example, in almost every jurisdiction, there are already existing laws that state, "Slower traffic must move to the right." Also, there are laws prohibiting blocking or impeding the flow of traffic. That means if you are going to putz along - compared to other traffic and regardless the speed limit - GET OUT OF THE WAY!!! That is, move to the right and get out of the left or passing lanes!
Notice I did not say, get out of the "fast" lanes. I said left or passing. I am not aware of any state driver's training or driver's license test that calls the left lanes the "fast" lanes.
So clearly, if limits are to be raised or dropped, many other conditions must be met. These include safer, regularly inspected cars. Better driver training and certification testing. Better built and maintained roads. AND more aggressive law enforcement.
Is the German Autobahn Safer than U.S. Highways?
Absolutely, YES!!!
Is the Autobahn Safer Than U.S. Highways?
britechguy
Well-known member
And the rest of German roads don't. I also refuse to believe that "the German Autobahn driving ethos" (which, by the way, I admire) can ever be transplanted to the USA. Very few attitudes where consideration of the rights of others being equal to one's own, sometimes being more important than one's own, transplant here. And in recent decades that's only gotten worse.
There are plenty of studies regarding speed, speed limits, and accident rates. I'll not rehash them here. Speed limits are a sensible measure and have proven their worth.
So what? You seem to be arguing just to argue, with an extremist (all or nothing) point of view. NO ONE here has ever suggested dropping speed limits from "all" roads. So that is just a moot point. And NO ONE here suggested otherwise. Even on the Autobahn, there are many areas with posted (and enforced) limits.
Well since you refuse to have an open mind to the possibilities, I see no reason to discuss this further.
So, to one and all, have a good day, and Happy New Year!
britechguy
Well-known member
It is well to open one's mind but only as a preliminary to closing it. . . for the supreme act of judgment and selection.
~ Irving Babbitt
If you keep your mind sufficiently open, people will throw a lot of rubbish into it.
~ William A. Orton
I am old enough to have had plenty of time to make my own considered judgments that may very well be in direct opposition to yours. You do not present any argument that is even close to persuasive so, no, I'm not about to reopen this for reconsideration. Old tropes die hard.
But, on your last point we agree, to one and all may 2022 bring you and yours the very best!
To drive on the Autobahn I read that you have to go through lengthy and rigorous driving tests that can take up to 6 months to complete and cost upwards of €2000
britechguy
Well-known member
That's not limited to the Autobahn, but to get a German driver's license. See: Learning how to drive in Germany, specifically the part about enrolling in a driving school.
But, that's for German citizens. If you are already licensed to drive elsewhere the rules are different. The Autobahn (or at least the parts that are "no speed limit") is not for the faint of heart, and not just due to the speed, but due to the expectation that you will know precisely what all the rules are and will abide by them. One thing that's supposed to be the law here, staying to the right except to pass, is not only the actual law there but drivers on the Autobahn expect that you will follow it religiously.
The Germans are not known around the world for their rule-making and rule-following for no reason! (This coming from a Vogel, 3 generations removed from Germany, and a part that's now a part of Poland).
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