Speed limit changes - or is it just me?

[SMOKEU]

god damn, whats wrong with just tougher licensing and more driver training etc?

Because that would be politically incorrect. Well, in NZ anyway. Idiots will then complain when they fail that it's their automatic right to drive etc.

[rastuscat]

Just more traps in order to give out more speeding fines...

Yawn. Same old BS.

[BigAl]

Yawn. Same old BS.

We know you're only saying that because you have to.

[Scuba_Steve]

Yawn. Same old BS.

Come now RC thats not the attitude, I saw the propaganda "Get better work stories" & here you are "". I'm beginning to think those "better work stories" might have been exaggerated...

[Tigadee]

Yawn. Same old BS.

I'm happy for an explanation of why it's slow-fast-slow-fast-slow-fast when it appears not necessary or even safe...

[avgas]

Slower speed limits make the road safer I have been told.
At slower speeds, trees and other inanimate objects are less likely to run in front of incoming traffic.

The other spin on this is that NZ has an aging population, so we must accommodate on NZ roads for them.

[rastuscat]

I'm happy for an explanation of why it's slow-fast-slow-fast-slow-fast when it appears not necessary or even safe...

Interesting question.

A couple of decades ago a piece of Pakuranga Road used to be 50, 70, 50. The 85th percentile was about 65. I was a Popo at the Glen Innes station in those days. TPTB smoothed the speed limits to 60 km/h, and the 85th percentile came down to 62. Significant improvement in crash stats. All good. Mind you, that was when the tolerance was starting to trend now too.

I used to be a Popo on the North Shore too. East Coast Road had a 50 km/h stretch with long driveways leading to the roadside from every house. It was a prime candidate for the limit to go up to 60, but the NSCC wouldn't do it. They liked to have a fairly rigid speed limit set, so people could get their head around it. Basically, if you were out in the country the limit was 100, if you were in built up areas, it was 50.

I moved to Chur Chur about 8 years ago, and found a council with a liberal speed setting regime. Some roads go 50, 60, 70, 50. Largely they are appropriate to the roading environment. We find lots of people (like, heaps) driving in 50 km/h areas thinking they are in 60 km/h areas. They are applying what they know to be a 10 km/h tolerance and can't understand the ticket they got being for 69 in a 50 km/h area. Harper Ave is a classic, as is Fendalton Road.

The signage is there, but people are known to consciously see about 20% of signs. They drive past signs, but because there are so many bloody signs (and various other visual clutter) on our roads, the speed ones just drift past the consciousness. People tend to drive subconsciously. Then feel aggrieved when they get snapped.

Thing is, you get speeding tickets for the speed you are actually doing, not what you think you are doing.

Just some observations.

[Jantar]

......The signage is there, but people are known to consciously see about 20% of signs. They drive past signs, but because there are so many bloody signs (and various other visual clutter) on our roads, the speed ones just drift past the consciousness. ...

This is just so true. With the distances I ride there are many times I find myself wondering just what the speed limit is at the spot I happen to be. Perhaps its because there are too many houses or driveways for it still to be 100, or maybe I'm now on a piece of open road after leaving a town, but I just haven't seen a speed sign. In those cases I go back to first principles to estimate what the speed limit is likely to be and ride accordingly, all the while hoping there's not a cop around the next corner.

There are many reasons why someone may miss seeing a speed sign, and clutter is just one of them. Here in Central Otago there is a 70 kmh sign on Letts Gulley rd that is stuck in the middle of a willow tree, it just isn't possible to see it until you are within 15 meters of it. At that point if you happen to be watching the horse rider on the other side of the road, or any other hazard, then you WILL miss that sign.

[rastuscat]

This is just so true. ..............Here in Central Otago there is a 70 kmh sign on Letts Gulley rd that is stuck in the middle of a willow tree, it just isn't possible to see it until you are within 15 meters of it. At that point if you happen to be watching the horse rider on the other side of the road, or any other hazard, then you WILL miss that sign.

Give the local road controlling authority a call. That might be the local authority, or it might be NZTA. Better yet, PM me the details, and I'll put on my Popo hat and ring them when I'm next at work.

[Tigadee]

Through residential or built-up areas I can understand, but the OP was talking about a state highway and how it goes 100-80-100-80-100...

I think that's rather unfair, confusing and seems deliberate in order to catch people off-guard. And as the former CEO of Telecom once said, "Confusion is a marketing tactic..."

[MSTRS:Me]

Interesting question.

A couple of decades ago a piece of Pakuranga Road used to be 50, 70, 50. The 85th percentile was about 65. I was a Popo at the Glen Innes station in those days. TPTB smoothed the speed limits to 60 km/h, and the 85th percentile came down to 62. Significant improvement in crash stats. All good. Mind you, that was when the tolerance was starting to trend now too.

I used to be a Popo on the North Shore too. East Coast Road had a 50 km/h stretch with long driveways leading to the roadside from every house. It was a prime candidate for the limit to go up to 60, but the NSCC wouldn't do it. They liked to have a fairly rigid speed limit set, so people could get their head around it. Basically, if you were out in the country the limit was 100, if you were in built up areas, it was 50.

I moved to Chur Chur about 8 years ago, and found a council with a liberal speed setting regime. Some roads go 50, 60, 70, 50. Largely they are appropriate to the roading environment. We find lots of people (like, heaps) driving in 50 km/h areas thinking they are in 60 km/h areas. They are applying what they know to be a 10 km/h tolerance and can't understand the ticket they got being for 69 in a 50 km/h area. Harper Ave is a classic, as is Fendalton Road.

The signage is there, but people are known to consciously see about 20% of signs. They drive past signs, but because there are so many bloody signs (and various other visual clutter) on our roads, the speed ones just drift past the consciousness. People tend to drive subconsciously. Then feel aggrieved when they get snapped.

Thing is, you get speeding tickets for the speed you are actually doing, not what you think you are doing.

Just some observations.

All that tells me is that you are one of those cops who just loves to write tickets. You keep moving to areas where the limits are - changeable, shall we say - allow the catching of many more hardened killers.
I hate the eastern bypass in Hamihole mainly because of the ever changing limit. 27 is boring, but then you can take the Tahuna/Ohinewai rd.

[Tigadee]

The signage is there, but people are known to consciously see about 20% of signs. They drive past signs, but because there are so many bloody signs (and various other visual clutter) on our roads, the speed ones just drift past the consciousness. People tend to drive subconsciously. Then feel aggrieved when they get snapped.

I certainly felt aggrieved when I got pulled over in New Plymouth one dark stormy night last winter when I'd arrived from Auckland after 5 hours in the car with wife and kids to go to a conference the next day. I was doing 100kph and then the speed changed to 70kph, with apparently one sign and the policeman caught me just as I was coming from the 100kph into the 70kph zone.

I tried explaining that it was dark, I was unfamiliar with the town and looking for our motel, that we'd just travelled through rain and dark for 5 hours from Auckland and I was apologetic. The policeman while professional was unsympathetic and wrote me a $80 ticket.

[Zamiam]

Glad to know I'm not the only one who sometimes wonders what the speed limit is. I prioritise watching the environment around me for potential hazards including other drivers/riders, kids on the side of the road, animals etc. etc. over reading searching for every sign.

Moved to North of Auckland four months ago and quite often do the Albany highway from Dairy Flat to Albany - it took me four trips to finally spot the 70km/hr to 100km/hr signage just before albany highway coming into dairy flat from Kaukapakapa, hung on the side of a telegraph pole in amongst the other clutter.

[rastuscat]

All that tells me is that you are one of those cops who just loves to write tickets. You keep moving to areas where the limits are - changeable, shall we say - allow the catching of many more hardened killers.
I hate the eastern bypass in Hamihole mainly because of the ever changing limit. 27 is boring, but then you can take the Tahuna/Ohinewai rd.

Yeah, I moved from Auckland to Christchurch in 2003 so I could catch more people speeding.

Good on ya.

[haydes55]

no one ever cares about the yellow white and blue etc cats eyes meaning left side of the road fire hydrants etc. Seriously I dont know if having these cats eyes has ever helped a single person. Why not change them to different colours to represent the speed limits? An easy way to tell what speed you should be going, e.g. colourless/white=100km/h Red=90km/h blue=80km/h orange 70km/h green=60km/h yellow=50km/h.