Fast and Safe

[bluninja]

Here is a question, for both sides of this argument.....

If we all drove mechanically sound cars i.e. up to correct WOF standard. (as required by the road code)

and to the road code (which is the speed limit or as conditions determine i.e. its wet you slow down)

Do you think that we would have a nil death toll?:

No! I guess to the road code means no driving under the influence of drugs/alcohol, or when medically unfit (sleep deprived included). But not every one is attentive all the time, so there will still be human error. In addition there will be (rare) sudden mechanical breakdown, and accidents caused by medical emergency (eg sudden heart attack).

This also doesn't take into account those with good reason to drive recklessly, such as car thieves, and burglars being chased who may also cause fatal accidents.

Now putting Alans example given many posts back ....

If we drove at a speed that we ourselves determine is safe (correct me if i am wrong in this) on the open road (and residential??) would this contribute to the current death toll or decrease it?


Your thoughts?

I think Alan, hasn't made this point very clear. There is a concept of safe speed, that is clearly definable, rather than subjective.

The 'Safe Speed Rule' taken from www.safespeed.org.uk

'Always ensure that you can stop comfortably, on your own side of the road, within the distance that you know to be clear.'

If you click on the link it will give you a much better explanation of it.

On that basis I would opine that if all people adopted the safe speed rule, the road toll would decrease. If they drive at whatever speed they 'feel' is safe without refernce to visibility, hazards and stopping distances then it will go up.

BTW the 'Daft Challenge' (not recommended) try and drive AT the posted speed limit at ALL times and see how long before you crash and possibly kill yourself. Whoops I forgot it's a maximum limit and not a target

[Waylander]

Originally posted by bluninja
BTW the 'Daft Challenge' (not recommended) try and drive AT the posted speed limit at ALL times and see how long before you crash and possibly kill yourself. Whoops I forgot it's a maximum limit and not a target

Was just wondering about this cause in the states the police can pull you over and give you a ticket for driving to slow. Not sure if its the same here, maybe spudchuka or one of the other resident police officers could answere this for me. If they can then the maximum limit is a target or atleast the general area within a certain number of kph would be the target.

[bluninja]

There's generally no minimum speed limit, unless posted. However I'm sure that if you drove so slowly as to be a hazard to other traffic then you may get pulled for something similar to undue care and attention.

I could be wrong, but if I am I wonder that tractors aren't fire breathing monsters to keep up on normal roads.....and can you imagine how quick a funeral cortege would go :spudwhat: I'd hate to be a cyclist trying to maintain the minimum speed limit, or a horse rider with a knackered horse from keeping the speed up. :LOL:

[Mongoose]

I think Alan, hasn't made this point very clear. There is a concept of safe speed, that is clearly definable, rather than subjective.
:

I rather suspect Alan has a lot of theory and that he would like to consider that he fits the bill for an extremely good driver, as many who have had accidents consider themselves to.
One variable that is NOT taken into any of his work is the human factor, very hard to factor into any equation.
Long may people like Alan and Brian continue at the extremes of our life(the further away the better sort of extreme)

[Hitcher]

Highly entertaining. The other "Scottish" thread...

[Mongoose]

Highly entertaining. The other "Scottish" thread...

Almost as repetative in places

[Paul in NZ]

Almost as repetative in places

It has other scarily similar features as well...

Basically both threads boil down to - I'm clever and can interpret the information for all you less clever / able people because - well I'm clever.... and you are not... We are all guilty of that sin... Pride...

any who... Heres a thought...

The kiwi and aussie attitude to life is based (IMHO - with NO research to back it up) on the recent pioneering past of our root stock. We are only a generation or 2 from people that were happy to gamble everything on a very big un known far across the seas and beyond all hope of rescue. Thus we Kiwis still like to see whats over the horizon, and the faster we can do it, the better. Risk takers and madmen the lot of us. Every one here is a relatively recent immigrant by global standards (yes everyone). We share this (to a certain extent) with the North Americans.

Give a kiwi a car and he wants to see how fast it can go...

Problem is, our island is, by a fortunate accident of geography, is blessed with some gnarly terrain (which is what we love) to build roads over. We need to be very very careful to kurb our inate desire to push the boundaries of speed because of our limited roads.

So, lets build bigger better faster more modern roads so Alan and his mates can tear about at a speed that satisifies their need for speed and their desire to satify their rights... fair enough, lets do that to shw1....

But would the motorcycle community be happy with alans roading plans....

Piss off... They are straightening them out too bloody much as it is... I LIKE windy difficult roads. If trucks can't use them effectively then get rid of the dirty poxy things and use the railways like Stevenson intended...

Sorry, I'll put up with the HP and 100kph if the trade off is exciting curves and death defing hair pins where I can feel like Rossi at 85kph...

Just a thought.. Could be wrong... probably am...

[Hitcher]

Let's start a new lobby group:

The Society for the Protection of the Tortuously Windy Road (SPoTWiR)...

[vifferman]

Just a thought.. Could be wrong... probably am...

Nope - it's a good thought, and I reckon you're right.
Mind you, that's because it's exactly what I believe too.

[loosebruce]

Let's start a new lobby group:

The Society for the Protection of the Tortuously Windy Road (SPoTWiR)...

Amen to that HItcher, it saddens me riding up and down the country, seeing big arse sighs saying, "such and such straightening (sp)", they best keep away from the coromandel.
Kaitoke hill looks like it'll be a bloody bore to ride over, next thing ys know they'll put a dead staright tunnel under the rima's, Nooooooooooooooo

[Lou Girardin]

Even the ones caught red handed are "alleged" burglars and none of them give a stuff about the civil rights or the property rights of the poor shmucks they steal from.

So society should stoop to their level. That will make us..............?

[Biff]

Let's start a new lobby group:

The Society for the Protection of the Tortuously Windy Road (SPoTWiR)...

How about the Association of Realistic Speed Enhancements ?
or the Wellington Association of Neo Kiwis Enraged by Rural Speeding ?

...work out the abbreviations yourselves

[Lou Girardin]

I rather suspect Alan has a lot of theory and that he would like to consider that he fits the bill for an extremely good driver, as many who have had accidents consider themselves to.

That's one hell of an assumption or do you know something about Alans accident record that we don't?

[Paul in NZ]

That's one hell of an assumption or do you know something about Alans accident record that we don't?

No, it's based on a logorithmic sliding scale interpretation so as to balance against the variation of belief amoungst KiwiBikers and adjusted for the annual continental drift of the techtonic plate that his computer sits on.

This is considered essential due to the variation in gravitational pull in specific locations along the Y axis of the sinusoidal wave graph ossillygraph that the figures were obtained from (commonly called a spirit board)..

We could be more accurate but the computer was stolen by a burgler just as it finished it's final run. the Police did ask his partner where he was but apparently it wasn't him, I was with him all night and you can't prove a thing you bastards and screw calling my lawyer you pigs, I'm calling my publicist...

Paul N

[Biff]

No, it's based on a logorithmic sliding scale interpretation so as to balance against the variation of belief amoungst KiwiBikers and adjusted for the annual continental drift of the techtonic plate that his computer sits on.

This is considered essential due to the variation in gravitational pull in specific locations along the Y axis of the sinusoidal wave graph ossillygraph that the figures were obtained from (commonly called a spirit board)..

We could be more accurate but the computer was stolen by a burgler just as it finished it's final run. the Police did ask his partner where he was but apparently it wasn't him, I was with him all night and you can't prove a thing you bastards and screw calling my lawyer you pigs, I'm calling my publicist...

Paul N

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