Study: Faster cars, higher speeds lead to more deaths

[bob35222]

Oh boy, and I have only had my marauder less than a month. I saw a program on the highspeed highways in Europe where it said they did't enforce speed limits but mostly the drive right law. In other words, slower drivers get out of the way. If being overtaken in the left lane it is a violation not to get out of the way, Wonder what that would do to accident rates.

http://edition.cnn.com/2003/TRAVEL/11/24/speed/

[MapleLeafMerc]

I think the drivers over there have more discipline as far as following ALL of the rules of the road, including that one. But I do think even just this one simple change would help here.

Especially on multi-lane freeways, where one or two cars that won't move right can cause dozens of others to make less-safe lane changes to get past.

[2003 MIB]

I think everywhere is more disciplined than Texas on the "slower traffic keep right" rule. If the speed limit is 70mph, there are always folks who become "pace cars" in the left lane. Drives me nuts....

[jaywish]

Have you tried I95 in Miami?

That drives me nuts. I think only a % of the population knows or cares about drive right.

So even if only 1 of twenty don't know or care..... what a disaster.


On a 12 lane yet.

[woaface]

WHAT ever! CNN is full of it. While the majority of FATAL accidents happen at higher speeds (since speed is mostly what it takes to kill anyone) the majority of accidents happen at or below the speed limit....(say, parking lots?). So what's up with IIHS? Hasn't the government already said that lowering or rasing the speed limit in large differences doesn't change the general pace of traffic by much? Here in SC, very few people stick to exactly the speed limit. Most roads here in Greenville could stand to be raised 5 or 10 miles an hour, and better constructed. In fact, many of them could stand to reconstructed, and/or actually finished at a decent time. I've read Greenville (county and city) has the 3rd highest rate of fatal accidents in the nation. We could get some better trained drivers. I've just gotten the third highest license the state can offer me at this age. So the state thinks I can drive just fine, but I don't think their test covers enough. While I don't think that we should have it like Germany and not let people drive till 18 (I support a Graduated License Program...say, start kids off slow from 16...), I do think they're right on with how train and test drivers. It took me 9 or 10 minutes to complete my test, and it would have been quicker if I hadn't sat at a stop light. It was stupid easy. I wish I didn't have to spend $300 of my own money to be taught how to actually drive. All the state did was teach me how to park.

[Bigdogjim]

Left lane bandits.
Rollin roadblocks.
Tourist.
Pain in the azz driver's
Call 'em what you like.

[woaface]

I'll go fetch those studies

[woaface]

http://www.motorists.org/issues/speed/speed_limit_research.html

(added to this post 10 minutes after the original post)

http://www.motorists.org/issues/speed/speedQA.html

[Paul T. Casey]

The guys I feel for are the truckers, whose passing lane on a three lane road is the center lane, the average yahoo (most of my family members included) thinks that is the travel lane. If I were a truck driver, I'd be in jail for self enforcement.

[woaface]

True true...but if it's four lanes on either side, I don't feel bad for them. My sister was going down a stretch of interestate where the trucks were limited to one lane ONLY. There were three trucks front to back in that lane and the middle one sped up a bit and cut over suddenly no signal and almost slammed her car into the barrier...lucky she was paying attention and stepped on brakes...enough to make them squeel.

[Petrograde]

I remember when I was stationed in Germany, I loved driving on the Autobahn. I had a POS '85 BMW 325i. I drove 130 mph everywhere I went.

I saw very few accidents, the few I saw were fatal,... but,.. statistically speaking, I was safer doing 130 in Germany than doing 80 in Texas.

As far as these idiots poking along in the left lane,.. I wish it were legal to ram them into the guard rail.

Tom

[Petrograde]

Originally posted by Paul T. Casey
The guys I feel for are the truckers, whose passing lane on a three lane road is the center lane

LOL! NOT in Texas! If I had a dollar for every truck I've seen in the far left lane of the 4 lane highways here, I could buy a Supercharger!

Tom

[Bigdogjim]

Base problem too many vehicles, not enough roads:mad:

That simple:)

[03SILVERSTREAK]

What he said...http://smilies.sofrayt.com/1/f/stretch.gif

[Krytin]

When I lived in N.H. ('87-'94) the state police actually enforced the keep right except to pass on all muiti-lane highways. Came back to N.Y. where I learned to drive ('76 N.Y.D.M.V. manual states "on all multi lane roadways - keep right except to pass") and not only don't they enforce it - D.M.V. says there is no law on the books that says a driver must keep right except to pass! Who's for grill mounted rocket launchers?

[RCSignals]

The big difference with that law on the no speed limit sections of autobahn is just that. There is no speed limit, so the give up the lane for faster vehicles makes sense.
Here there are speed limits, but there are many drivers who believe they are exempt from them, and if they are exceeding the speed limit it somehow gives them the right to the left lane.
There is no such thing as a "Fast lane" here, but there is a "slow lane".

[dwasson]

I'd like to see the numbers of fatalities versus miles driven for Interstates, country roads and city surface streets. I suspect that Interstates are the safest, and country two lanes are the most dangerous. My dad retired to a small town in south Michigan and he says that while there are more accidents in metro Detroit the wrecks in his area are more often fatal. 60 mph T-bone collisions are likely to hurt someone no matter how big your car is.

One other thing that is important to remember about major media news reporting on cars is that most of the reporters in the major media have no technical aptitude and probably don't even like cars. I am always amazed at how some people from NYC or DC are so clueless about the distances involved in traveling the rest of the country. It looks like New Yorkers think that anything farther than Long Island is a plane trip.

Also, I've been reading articles for years that suggest that most of the liberal elites would prefer that we all rode in anonymous tranport modules anyway. One plus to the Marauder is that it's the kind of car that gets those people angry on principle.

Gotta love it!

[Murader03]

Today's Driver's Ed. doesn't preach or practice rules of the raod. I've got two grandkids who went to drivers ed and don't know squat about rules of the road. Neither their mother nor father do either. I was amazed driving with my wife's daughter one day and she camped in the left lane at the speed limit. I asker her what she was doing and she replied, "I driving at the speed limit." I said "didn't anyone ever tell you that you drive right, pass left?" She said, "No, what's that mean?" I followed my granddaughter home today. She changed lanes with her turn signal BTW, but she was already changing lanes before she turned it on. Today in some states you can take the test even if you can't read English. So how are these drivers supposed to konw what the rules are? Go figure!

[SILVERMARAUDER]

HEY woaface HOW IS IT YOU HAVE SENIOR MEMBER STATUS ONLY REG SINCE NOV 03? JUST CURIOUS?

[MapleLeafMerc]

Originally posted by SILVERMARAUDER
HEY woaface HOW IS IT YOU HAVE SENIOR MEMBER STATUS ONLY REG SINCE NOV 03? JUST CURIOUS?

Automatic after 100 posts, I think.

[2003 MIB]

Automatic after 100 posts, I think.

Nope. :)

[2003 MIB]

GOT IT!- You can change your status in your profile.

[2003 MIB]

Doh!- it doesn't save changes. I dunno.

[MapleLeafMerc]

Originally posted by RCSignals
Here there are speed limits, but there are many drivers who believe they are exempt from them, and if they are exceeding the speed limit it somehow gives them the right to the left lane.

True enough, RC, but I see it as a matter of courtesy.

I have the right to walk down the middle of the sidewalk and make everyone else scatter, but courtesy says I don't. People who set themselves up as speed limit 'vigilantes' in the left lane are simply being discourteous and unnecessarily antagonizing other motorists, IMHO.

It's the job of LEO to enforce speed limits, not private citizens.

[MapleLeafMerc]

I think most accidents are the result of driver distraction and error, not speeding.

[jgc61sr2002]

Originally posted by MapleLeafMerc
Automatic after 100 posts, I think. That is correct.

[jgc61sr2002]

dwasson - " It looks like New Yorkers think that anything farther than Long Island is a plane trip". What do you mean by that?:confused:

[RCSignals]

Originally posted by MapleLeafMerc
True enough, RC, but I see it as a matter of courtesy.

I have the right to walk down the middle of the sidewalk and make everyone else scatter, but courtesy says I don't. People who set themselves up as speed limit 'vigilantes' in the left lane are simply being discourteous and unnecessarily antagonizing other motorists, IMHO.

It's the job of LEO to enforce speed limits, not private citizens.

I'm not talking about self appointed speed limit vigilantes.

The fact remains that there is a speed limit to the left lane, and someone travelling the left lane at an excessive speed does not gain any more right to it just because he is exceeding the speed limit.
It is just as discourteous for a speeder to believe so, flash headlights and tailgate as it is for someone driving the left lane at the speed limit not to use the right lane if it is clear.
Most often driving the speed limit in the left lane already means one is driving faster than vehicles in the right lane.

[cyclone03]

Originally posted by Petrograde
LOL! NOT in Texas! If I had a dollar for every truck I've seen in the far left lane of the 4 lane highways here, I could buy a Supercharger!

Tom

Believe it or not they are Not restricted to the right lanes here in the Republic.

[cyclone03]

I can't quote the study but I read years ago that most people have a good sense of "safe speed".Seems we look out the windshield and set our safe speed.

The test for this was having test subjects drive down UNFAMILURE roads,seems not knowing where the road went caused them to pick a very safe speed(That was faster than the posted limit).
BTW the speedometers where covered and the speed limit signs covered too.

Now the bad news,seems nature gave us the fight or flight reflex that causes us to try to get out of areas we can't see through.Guess what causes us to really mash the gas?FOG!
YUP same roads with fog and every test driver ran at least 10mph faster over the same course as when it was clear!
I never wonder how 70 cars can run into each other in the fog anymore.

[RCSignals]

Another reason for the faster speed during fog in that test may be because it is more difficult to judge speed under those conditions. Not necessarily a desire to outrun it.

[cruzer]

We have lost 3 people in my area this week in accidents where they were trying to drive their cars like they show in manufacturer's commercials--just putting the disclaimer "professional drivers on closed course " in small letters at the bottom of the ad doesn't get through to the average driver--especially young drivers, the danger of trying to drive like a pro with NO EXPERIENCE to rely on. I have taken all my kids and grandkids out and scared the h--- out of them by driving on the edge---it seems to have worked--got to do it with my grandson this week. I hold the manufacturers responsible for for reckless advertizing encouraging inexperienced drivers to experiment--IMHO