3 ms·

Predicated on having already crashed, the chances that speed was a contributing factor to the severity is very high. That's why people want lower speed limits.

Predicated on having already crashed, the chances that speed was a contributing factor to the severity is very high. That's why people want lower speed limits. Predicated on simply having been driving over the speed limit, the chances of an accident are very low. That's why people don't care about speeding.

Karrot_Kream 5y ago
This only captures crashes with other road users. Increased speed increases a lot of other risks, such as risk of injury to pedestrians at crosswalks or sidewalks, increased risk to hitting a building, and of course the general depressing effect that happens on non-car usage of roads (how many people will want to ride a bike on a road where all car drivers are speeding?). (This is one of my big issues with US speed limits. All the discussion around it is always scoped only to other cars for the most part.)
dionidium 5y ago
I don't have these numbers, but I'm positive that the lifetime risk for having experienced a serious car accident (or any car accident for that matter) is strongly correlated with driving behavior and specifically speeding. Second, there's the matter of just how damn uncomfortable it is to be around speeding cars when you're not also in a car yourself. People in suburbs don't really think about this because nobody walks anywhere. But I live in a walkable urban environment and the speeders here are an enormous hit to quality of life. They're louder, more aggressive -- it's just really unsettling to be around. This can be hard to convince suburbanites of, because they conceive of themselves mostly as drivers and not as pedestrians, but even if there were no safety improvements, it would be a huge win for urban environments if we could rein in speeding. But the reality is that it would also save ~6,000 lives a year in the U.S.

3 ms·

Predicated on having already crashed, the chances that speed was a contributing factor to the severity is very high. That's why people want lower speed limits.

by jstanley 5y ago

Karrot_Kream 5y ago
This only captures crashes with other road users. Increased speed increases a lot of other risks, such as risk of injury to pedestrians at crosswalks or sidewalks, increased risk to hitting a building, and of course the general depressing effect that happens on non-car usage of roads (how many people will want to ride a bike on a road where all car drivers are speeding?). (This is one of my big issues with US speed limits. All the discussion around it is always scoped only to other cars for the most part.)
dionidium 5y ago
I don't have these numbers, but I'm positive that the lifetime risk for having experienced a serious car accident (or any car accident for that matter) is strongly correlated with driving behavior and specifically speeding. Second, there's the matter of just how damn uncomfortable it is to be around speeding cars when you're not also in a car yourself. People in suburbs don't really think about this because nobody walks anywhere. But I live in a walkable urban environment and the speeders here are an enormous hit to quality of life. They're louder, more aggressive -- it's just really unsettling to be around. This can be hard to convince suburbanites of, because they conceive of themselves mostly as drivers and not as pedestrians, but even if there were no safety improvements, it would be a huge win for urban environments if we could rein in speeding. But the reality is that it would also save ~6,000 lives a year in the U.S.