4 ms·

I drive around Europe, frequently and great distances. The ONLY country where I got a speeding ticket three times in three years is Latvia. My tickets are all b

I drive around Europe, frequently and great distances. The ONLY country where I got a speeding ticket three times in three years is Latvia. My tickets are all by "a little faster" (15km/h or so, not doing 150 on a 50 zone) They got (imho) the lowest speed limits in any of the countries I've travelled, cameras everywhere (that's good though), and even on their "motorways" (imagine crappy roads in the US in the 60s, but worse) the limit is something silly like 60km/h. So for anyone that is simple crossing through the country (N-S Estonia-->Latvia-->Lithuania or S-N) it is a nerve breaking experience to be forced to drive 30-60km/h while CROSSING A WHOLE (small) country. When I read the article I thought exactly that. Shitty country, shitty roads, shitty speed limits, it's as if they do it on purpose to fine every foreigner and they don't upgrade their infrastructure.. How will that country ever prosper when any/all transportation has to go with 30km/h? Well played Latvia.. you are the Fenton of the Europe!

uxp8u61q 3y ago
15 km/h is not "a little bit faster", WTF.
- varjag 3y ago
  Depends on the speed limit really. In a 90 zone it's a poor habit but common throughout Europe. In a 30, it's in the goodbye driving license territory over here.
  - uxp8u61q 3y ago
    I live in western Europe. Doing 105 in a 90 zone is not a common habit. When I'm going 90 in a 90, very few people go faster than me, and when they pass me, usually everyone in the car goes "holy shit look at these maniacs". And energy is quadratic with respect to velocity. Going 90->105 is worse than 30->45. The only difference is that a 30 zone is usually a densely populated area, so the risks are different.
    - dagw 3y ago
      Which country? That does not match my view of any Western European country I've lived or driven in.
    - varjag 3y ago
      I live in Norway. The most common highway speed is 80, but when you see someone driving sharp 80 it's most often a novice or the car is on automatic cruise. Most people lay on 5-8 km/h but on a multi lane road people doing 90+ are not uncommon. Traffic cameras for 80 zones are typically tuned in +12. I'm not sure where you are, but from my driving elsewhere, it appears similar in Sweden (only the posted speeds are higher), and worse in Spain & Italy. And energy is quadratic with respect to velocity. Going 90->105 is worse than 30->45. Since the speed delta is the same it's far worse with 30 to 45, and regulations reflect that.
      - uxp8u61q 3y ago
        We clearly have different experience on the road. > Since the speed delta is the same it's far worse with 30 to 45, and regulations reflect that. If E(v) = mv²/2, then E(v+dv) = m(v+dv)²/2 = mv² + m v dv/2 + m dv²/2. As you can see, the middle term is proportional to v, the initial speed. Kinetic energy does increase more going 90->105 than 30->45. Maybe this is too abstract, so he're a concrete example. Let's assume a vehicle weighing 1 ton (1000 kg). * Going 30 km/h => kinetic energy is 34 kJ * Going 45 km/h => kinetic energy is 78 kJ, so about 43 kJ more * Going 90 km/h => kinetic energy is 312 kJ * Going 105 km/h => kinetic energy is 425 kJ, so about 113 kJ more It's really basic physics.
        varjag 3y ago
        Then I think you understood that 15 over 30 represents more than a doubling of the energy versus the increase by 1/3 in the (already assuringly lethal for pedestrian) 90 case.
    - mcv 3y ago
      The A10 ring around Amsterdam has a max speed of 100 (except the west side where it's 80), but when there's no traffic jam, it's not unusual for a lot of people to go at least 110.
- verve_rat 3y ago
  Agreed 15ks is a lot. Time to slow down before you kill someone GP.
dsomers 3y ago
> Shitty country How rude. They were economically shattered by being occupied by the USSR for decades. Lay off.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- OfSanguineFire 3y ago
  Nothing to do with USSR legacy, especially considering that EU funds became available for new roadworks in the early millennium. Lithuania was occupied by the USSR, too, and is about the same size, but it has emphasized motorways more. If you drive north through the Baltics, the change from Lithuanian roads to Latvian ones is drastic.
jkulubya 3y ago
15kph is definitely not “a little faster”. But maybe the more interesting discussion would be, why, apart from the obviously not true 30kph national speed limit, Latvia seems to be doing okay without this excess of speed?
whynotmaybe 3y ago
Basically, you're speeding on shitty roads, where the speed limit were set because they know they're shitty and dangerous? And it's somehow on purpose and they should let you drive above the speed limit because 'you know'? Prepare to avoid Belgium because they're lowering the tolerance on the speed radar and you might get a ticket for driving 5kmh above the speed limit. Even on the brand new highways.
mcv 3y ago
People driving through your country without doing any business in your country can be a serious strain, though. This is particularly an issue in Belgium, which has exactly the right shape to host a lot of through traffic between Netherland and France, which puts a lot of wear on the roads without paying for it. Belgium has normal speed limits, fortunately, but poorly maintained roads. It wouldn't be unreasonable if through traffic from Netherland and France somehow paid a bit for that.
mopsi 3y ago
> They got (imho) the lowest speed limits in any of the countries I've travelled, cameras everywhere (that's good though), and even on their "motorways" (imagine crappy roads in the US in the 60s, but worse) the limit is something silly like 60km/h. So for anyone that is simple crossing through the country (N-S Estonia-->Latvia-->Lithuania or S-N) it is a nerve breaking experience to be forced to drive 30-60km/h while CROSSING A WHOLE (small) country. I don't understand why you saw the need to make up something this ridiculous. The standard speed on all surfaced roads is 90 kph, and up to 120 kph on major roads like the E67 that connects Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

uxp8u61q 3y ago

15 km/h is not "a little bit faster", WTF.

varjag 3y ago
Depends on the speed limit really. In a 90 zone it's a poor habit but common throughout Europe. In a 30, it's in the goodbye driving license territory over here.
- uxp8u61q 3y ago
  I live in western Europe. Doing 105 in a 90 zone is not a common habit. When I'm going 90 in a 90, very few people go faster than me, and when they pass me, usually everyone in the car goes "holy shit look at these maniacs". And energy is quadratic with respect to velocity. Going 90->105 is worse than 30->45. The only difference is that a 30 zone is usually a densely populated area, so the risks are different.
  - dagw 3y ago
    Which country? That does not match my view of any Western European country I've lived or driven in.
  - varjag 3y ago
    I live in Norway. The most common highway speed is 80, but when you see someone driving sharp 80 it's most often a novice or the car is on automatic cruise. Most people lay on 5-8 km/h but on a multi lane road people doing 90+ are not uncommon. Traffic cameras for 80 zones are typically tuned in +12. I'm not sure where you are, but from my driving elsewhere, it appears similar in Sweden (only the posted speeds are higher), and worse in Spain & Italy. And energy is quadratic with respect to velocity. Going 90->105 is worse than 30->45. Since the speed delta is the same it's far worse with 30 to 45, and regulations reflect that.
    - uxp8u61q 3y ago
      We clearly have different experience on the road. > Since the speed delta is the same it's far worse with 30 to 45, and regulations reflect that. If E(v) = mv²/2, then E(v+dv) = m(v+dv)²/2 = mv² + m v dv/2 + m dv²/2. As you can see, the middle term is proportional to v, the initial speed. Kinetic energy does increase more going 90->105 than 30->45. Maybe this is too abstract, so he're a concrete example. Let's assume a vehicle weighing 1 ton (1000 kg). * Going 30 km/h => kinetic energy is 34 kJ * Going 45 km/h => kinetic energy is 78 kJ, so about 43 kJ more * Going 90 km/h => kinetic energy is 312 kJ * Going 105 km/h => kinetic energy is 425 kJ, so about 113 kJ more It's really basic physics.
      - varjag 3y ago
        Then I think you understood that 15 over 30 represents more than a doubling of the energy versus the increase by 1/3 in the (already assuringly lethal for pedestrian) 90 case.
  - mcv 3y ago
    The A10 ring around Amsterdam has a max speed of 100 (except the west side where it's 80), but when there's no traffic jam, it's not unusual for a lot of people to go at least 110.
verve_rat 3y ago
Agreed 15ks is a lot. Time to slow down before you kill someone GP.

dsomers 3y ago

> Shitty country How rude. They were economically shattered by being occupied by the USSR for decades. Lay off.

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
OfSanguineFire 3y ago
Nothing to do with USSR legacy, especially considering that EU funds became available for new roadworks in the early millennium. Lithuania was occupied by the USSR, too, and is about the same size, but it has emphasized motorways more. If you drive north through the Baltics, the change from Lithuanian roads to Latvian ones is drastic.

jkulubya 3y ago

15kph is definitely not “a little faster”. But maybe the more interesting discussion would be, why, apart from the obviously not true 30kph national speed limit, Latvia seems to be doing okay without this excess of speed?

whynotmaybe 3y ago

Basically, you're speeding on shitty roads, where the speed limit were set because they know they're shitty and dangerous? And it's somehow on purpose and they should let you drive above the speed limit because 'you know'? Prepare to avoid Belgium because they're lowering the tolerance on the speed radar and you might get a ticket for driving 5kmh above the speed limit. Even on the brand new highways.

mcv 3y ago

People driving through your country without doing any business in your country can be a serious strain, though. This is particularly an issue in Belgium, which has exactly the right shape to host a lot of through traffic between Netherland and France, which puts a lot of wear on the roads without paying for it. Belgium has normal speed limits, fortunately, but poorly maintained roads. It wouldn't be unreasonable if through traffic from Netherland and France somehow paid a bit for that.

mopsi 3y ago

> They got (imho) the lowest speed limits in any of the countries I've travelled, cameras everywhere (that's good though), and even on their "motorways" (imagine crappy roads in the US in the 60s, but worse) the limit is something silly like 60km/h. So for anyone that is simple crossing through the country (N-S Estonia-->Latvia-->Lithuania or S-N) it is a nerve breaking experience to be forced to drive 30-60km/h while CROSSING A WHOLE (small) country. I don't understand why you saw the need to make up something this ridiculous. The standard speed on all surfaced roads is 90 kph, and up to 120 kph on major roads like the E67 that connects Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.