Melbourne to Sydney in 6.5 Hours

[Marcus]

Interesting article...

I'm in favour to increasing the speed limit to 130km on the major freeways

http://www.news.com.au/technology/police-slam-speed-stunt-melbourne-to-sydney-in-65-hours/story-e6frfro0-1226720616819

[Biggles]

They could safely add 10 kph to many of our roads.
The trouble is, we are all forced to travel at a speed that is safe for the most incompetent driver they can find.
There are plenty of ironies- e.g. 100 kph single lane country roads where there are no more accidents than those wretched 80 and 90 kph sections of dual and quad lane roads.
"Drive to the conditions" is the magical sign one sees ever so rarely.  What a breath of fresh air that is!

[saaz]

I like the 'slow down' signs - slow down from what?

[Shiney]

I'm in favour to increasing the speed limit also

The limits were decided (for the most part) when the handling, breaks and general abilities of the vehicles on the road were rubbish (compared to the vehicles of today).
So increasing the speed isn't going to be pushing the vehicles beyond what they are reasonably able to handle.

And as for fatigue I remember a report a few years back (I think it was in Europe) it went something like this...

There was this long road that ran dead straight for ages then had a bend.
On that bend there were shitloads of crashes each year.
To combat this they increased the speed limit after doing a study to determine the best speed to keep drivers attention. (I believe it was around the 130 mark).
Anyway the increased speed resulted in drivers remaining more alert and reduced the amount of crashes significantly.

There are many reasonable reasons to raise the speed limit but I cant see it happening any time soon

[Diesel]

I haven't watched the vid yet - but looks interesting and seems to complement the Magazine's view in Marcus' post.....


http://jalopnik.com/this-is-the-best-takedown-of-the-speed-kills-myth-you-1302382244?utm_campaign=socialflow_jalopnik_facebook&utm_source=jalopnik_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

[Marcus]

haha... that's funny and true

[Shiney]

I haven't watched the vid yet - but looks interesting and seems to complement the Magazine's view in Marcus' post.....


http://jalopnik.com/this-is-the-best-takedown-of-the-speed-kills-myth-you-1302382244?utm_campaign=socialflow_jalopnik_facebook&utm_source=jalopnik_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

That is AWESOME

[winston66]

Winston66,
I have always been confused by the amount of so called informed comment about the safety factor in regard to speed limits and the control the authorities want to inflict on us as road users. All I know is that I have been a licensed vehicle driver for fifty four years.
When I was very young , two of my motorcycling buddies were permanently  wiped out because of some careless and inappropriate behavior whilst on a weekend jaunts.
I was enjoying my life and wanted to continue doing so.
I took great notice of what happened to my buddies.
Now I can truthfully say that I have never been in involved in a serious  road incident, either of my own making ,or because of another drivers inattention or crass stupidity.
What I am trying to say is that I believe that a person is ultimately responsible for their own behaviour and  safety, I have always practiced defensive driving techniques , and maintained my vehicles.
I will admit that i like to drive to suit the conditions , and at the same time I am not squeaky cleen.
On occasions I can plead guilty to giving myself a bit of a thrill by fanging the beast. After all  is-int this one of the main reasons that we all want to have one of the best motorcycles for the purpose that we can.
I guess that the point that seems most important to me, and that is the one that I want to make is this .
  1   As experienced motorcyclists. We know what we are doing , and also what we are capable of.
 2   The average person, as far as I am concerned, is totally incompetent, as far as operating a complex piece of machinery  is concerned.( a car)
  3   Their attention span is generally limited, and can be totally compromised because of on board distractions . I.E. Complex and fiddly controls in the motor vehicle, Telephones, Music players, passengers ,Undisciplined children, chatting to and being distracted by other passengers , and the list goes on an on  for ever.
Now some one will say That I am an uncompromising person, but I want to say,
I am totally in favor of existing posted speed limit laws even though some of them seem to be ridiculous, and this is because.

 THE AVERAGE PERSON IS STUPID AND NEEDS TO BE PROTECTED FROM THE CONSEQUENCES OF THEIR  OWN STUPID BEHAVIOR, AND INABILITIES.

and doing just that hopefully, I will not ever be compromised because of someone eases stupidity.
And that is that.

Cheers to all

Incidentally, now at my present stage in life, when riding my motorcycles I am convinced that it is the journey that, is what I am seeking , and not just an Adrenalin rush when something unexpected happens, also I am going somewhere for a purpose , I want to get there in order to enjoy the outing, so if I haven't given myself enough time to do it safely ,or comfortably,I guess that I might arrive a couple of minutes later than estimated.
But I will get there happily and safely.

Gosh, I did rave on a bit didn't  I

cheers , Winston66

[saaz]

Unfortunately there are many drivers who cannot even stick to 110kph on the freeways without exceeding their skill levels.  More a reflection of licensing standards.  These days it seems more people can afford a car even if they can't really drive.

[STeveo]

The old 'low performance driver in a high performance car'.

 

[Yorkie]

People are taught how to pass the test these days, not how to drive.

[atoyot]

Don't the safety experts say that the lower the speed limit, the less number of deaths occur. They should qualify this, as I'm sure that if they did lower it and kept lowering it, they would get to a point where deaths would increase, as more people got pissed off going so slow and did something stupid. A bit like now when people do something stupid when someone gets in their way.

Hands up anyone who's seen someone do something stupid around an "L" plater that can only go 80 on the open road? (not a question for Victorians)

[Marcus]

(not a question for Victorians)

awwww man, I wanted to answer that as well...

[STeveo]

   And not just learner drivers.

If 'speed' is so dangerous then to be safe we should remain stationary at all times!

 

[gaz]

many drivers who cannot even stick to 100kph on the highway