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I have driven across the country a few times. There's not much traffic once you are beyond the suburbs around the major cities. Even in densely populated areas

I have driven across the country a few times. There's not much traffic once you are beyond the suburbs around the major cities. Even in densely populated areas it's common for highway traffic to cruise at 75+. 100+ in a high-performance car is not too extreme.

lucaspiller 13y ago
As a Brit I find this quite hilarious. On our motorways the speed limit is 70mph, but pretty much everyone cruises along at 90mph+.
- DanBC 13y ago
  Depends on the motorway. And while there are plenty of people going at 90+ that's not most people. I'd guess most people are doing about 80. Unless there's a police car visible, when everyone drops to 68 and there's a huge tailback. Or they're on the M25.
- WA 13y ago
  As a German, it's even more hilarious. I do 100mph on the Autobahn most of the time and still get passed by Audis, BMWs, Porsches, Mercedes driving 125mph. I never understood why you can drive only 70mph in the States in perfect conditions with looong roads, extremely long view distance, nothing in the way. Makes no sense to me.
  - podperson 13y ago
    There's quite a bit of discussion about the driving cultures of the US vs. Germany. In particular, Germans appear to think that you should pay attention when driving. The US attitude to driving is best exemplified by the fact that most family cars now have 2-3 cup holders per seat and two or more video screens.
  - wglb 13y ago
    Not all of the roads, out west, for example, are as well engineered as the Autobahn. But you do have a good point--this doesn't account for all of the difference.
    - WA 13y ago
      There isn't THE Autobahn anyways. Autobahn is just our word for Interstate and not all of them are equally well-maintained. There are speed limits where it makes sense. There are speed limits in certain conditions (rain, ice, windy bridge, worn-down road), there are flexible speed limits (rush hour). Recently, I drove from NYC all the way down to Miami. Speed limits make sense on the Blue Ridge Parkway, because of all the wildlife. But we were also passing endless roads that went just straight, perfect view, perfectly wide. This would be a typical spot in Germany where there's simply no speed limit, because it doesn't make any sense. I noticed something else in the States: People on Interstates and highways stick relatively close to speed limits. However, once you get into city limits of bigger cities, everyone seems to drive at least 10mph over limit, if not more. In Miami, there was a point where not a single car(!) was driving the maximum allowed speed, but at least 10mph faster. But I noticed a similar thing in other major cities as well. I never understood that.
      - wglb 13y ago
        Agreed. In Chicago, 10 over would be slow. On the tollway that skirts Chicago, the limit is 55, but 80 is not uncommon. I think the speedup is kind of a natural thing. When commuting, everyone on the road knows the road and conditions very well and are all in a hurry to get to the office or home. And from a practical standpoint, this speed tends to maximize the overall flow of traffic. And the thinking is that you stand out on the road in the rural area, but in the city, you are one of zillions.
  - oftenwrong 13y ago
    In addition to the points raised in sibling replies, the standards for getting a driving license in the USA are very low.
- rmc 13y ago
  The German Autobahns (Motorways) are something else beyond that. No legal speed limits there. Going along at 150 kmph (~90mph) and being over taken by cars going way faster than you is something else.
- tonylemesmer 13y ago
  I would say 90+ is the target speed of a lot of cars, however the actual average is probably still in the 70s due to congestion. I'm trying to gather some data on this at the moment. To say "pretty much everyone" is false.

lucaspiller 13y ago

As a Brit I find this quite hilarious. On our motorways the speed limit is 70mph, but pretty much everyone cruises along at 90mph+.

DanBC 13y ago
Depends on the motorway. And while there are plenty of people going at 90+ that's not most people. I'd guess most people are doing about 80. Unless there's a police car visible, when everyone drops to 68 and there's a huge tailback. Or they're on the M25.
WA 13y ago
As a German, it's even more hilarious. I do 100mph on the Autobahn most of the time and still get passed by Audis, BMWs, Porsches, Mercedes driving 125mph. I never understood why you can drive only 70mph in the States in perfect conditions with looong roads, extremely long view distance, nothing in the way. Makes no sense to me.
- podperson 13y ago
  There's quite a bit of discussion about the driving cultures of the US vs. Germany. In particular, Germans appear to think that you should pay attention when driving. The US attitude to driving is best exemplified by the fact that most family cars now have 2-3 cup holders per seat and two or more video screens.
- wglb 13y ago
  Not all of the roads, out west, for example, are as well engineered as the Autobahn. But you do have a good point--this doesn't account for all of the difference.
  - WA 13y ago
    There isn't THE Autobahn anyways. Autobahn is just our word for Interstate and not all of them are equally well-maintained. There are speed limits where it makes sense. There are speed limits in certain conditions (rain, ice, windy bridge, worn-down road), there are flexible speed limits (rush hour). Recently, I drove from NYC all the way down to Miami. Speed limits make sense on the Blue Ridge Parkway, because of all the wildlife. But we were also passing endless roads that went just straight, perfect view, perfectly wide. This would be a typical spot in Germany where there's simply no speed limit, because it doesn't make any sense. I noticed something else in the States: People on Interstates and highways stick relatively close to speed limits. However, once you get into city limits of bigger cities, everyone seems to drive at least 10mph over limit, if not more. In Miami, there was a point where not a single car(!) was driving the maximum allowed speed, but at least 10mph faster. But I noticed a similar thing in other major cities as well. I never understood that.
    - wglb 13y ago
      Agreed. In Chicago, 10 over would be slow. On the tollway that skirts Chicago, the limit is 55, but 80 is not uncommon. I think the speedup is kind of a natural thing. When commuting, everyone on the road knows the road and conditions very well and are all in a hurry to get to the office or home. And from a practical standpoint, this speed tends to maximize the overall flow of traffic. And the thinking is that you stand out on the road in the rural area, but in the city, you are one of zillions.
- oftenwrong 13y ago
  In addition to the points raised in sibling replies, the standards for getting a driving license in the USA are very low.
rmc 13y ago
The German Autobahns (Motorways) are something else beyond that. No legal speed limits there. Going along at 150 kmph (~90mph) and being over taken by cars going way faster than you is something else.
tonylemesmer 13y ago
I would say 90+ is the target speed of a lot of cars, however the actual average is probably still in the 70s due to congestion. I'm trying to gather some data on this at the moment. To say "pretty much everyone" is false.