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the article repeatedly mentioned: raising speed limits does not raise driving speeds on roads. humans are kind of strange in the fact that they drive at a spee

by autokad 12y ago

the article repeatedly mentioned: raising speed limits does not raise driving speeds on roads. humans are kind of strange in the fact that they drive at a speed they are comfortable with. also, while that (faster = crash more) may be true, its not the only thing going on. it may be the case (and one argued in the article) that driving speed differences results in more crashes.

bryanlarsen 12y ago
"raising speed limits does not raise driving speeds on roads" I suspect that's a temporary effect. The speed people are comfortable at is mostly a learned phenomenon. The more they drive fast safely, the more comfortable they feel. Remember when you first started riding your bicycle? 10 mph was super fast and was super scary. And it is; that's faster than the speeds that the human body was evolved to support.
- autokad 12y ago
  i didnt keep riding bicycle faster and faster and faster. i got to a point where i was comfortable at that speed...
  - wiredfool 12y ago
    Alternate explanation: You got a point where it's physically very hard to go faster. Most people who ride motorcycles or mopeds do it faster than they would on a bicycle.
    - jdbernard 12y ago
      And yet, as someone who travels almost exclusively by motorcycle, there is a limit to how fast I am willing to go which varies depending on the road I am on. My bike will easily go much faster, and I feel like I could safely command the bike even going fair bit faster, but I am not comfortable going faster on a regular basis.
      - wiredfool 12y ago
        Yes. Motorcycles are like that. Nearly every motorcycle is physically capable of going faster than the rider is comfortable doing. It's very hard to do that on a bicycle, except perhaps for offroad downhill type rides. On my usual road (bicycling) loop, there's one corner where I actually have to control my speed to feel safe, but even there I could probably take it a good 20% faster than I do. (It's a slightly bumpy, banked right turn @ an intersection at the bottom of a steep hill) So, for 15 seconds out of a 1.5 hour ride, I'm limited by something other than muscle power.
- smileysteve 12y ago
  This reminds me, since standard speed limits were set, automobiles have drastically increased in their abilities. Rear independent suspension, lighter weight, disc brakes, radial and tubeless tires. Just like on a bike, the first one was a heavy steel one with thick tires. Now, I'm riding a road bike that weighs a tiny amount and has dual compound tires.

by autokad 12y ago

bryanlarsen 12y ago

"raising speed limits does not raise driving speeds on roads" I suspect that's a temporary effect. The speed people are comfortable at is mostly a learned phenomenon. The more they drive fast safely, the more comfortable they feel. Remember when you first started riding your bicycle? 10 mph was super fast and was super scary. And it is; that's faster than the speeds that the human body was evolved to support.

autokad 12y ago
i didnt keep riding bicycle faster and faster and faster. i got to a point where i was comfortable at that speed...
- wiredfool 12y ago
  Alternate explanation: You got a point where it's physically very hard to go faster. Most people who ride motorcycles or mopeds do it faster than they would on a bicycle.
  - jdbernard 12y ago
    And yet, as someone who travels almost exclusively by motorcycle, there is a limit to how fast I am willing to go which varies depending on the road I am on. My bike will easily go much faster, and I feel like I could safely command the bike even going fair bit faster, but I am not comfortable going faster on a regular basis.
    - wiredfool 12y ago
      Yes. Motorcycles are like that. Nearly every motorcycle is physically capable of going faster than the rider is comfortable doing. It's very hard to do that on a bicycle, except perhaps for offroad downhill type rides. On my usual road (bicycling) loop, there's one corner where I actually have to control my speed to feel safe, but even there I could probably take it a good 20% faster than I do. (It's a slightly bumpy, banked right turn @ an intersection at the bottom of a steep hill) So, for 15 seconds out of a 1.5 hour ride, I'm limited by something other than muscle power.
smileysteve 12y ago
This reminds me, since standard speed limits were set, automobiles have drastically increased in their abilities. Rear independent suspension, lighter weight, disc brakes, radial and tubeless tires. Just like on a bike, the first one was a heavy steel one with thick tires. Now, I'm riding a road bike that weighs a tiny amount and has dual compound tires.