Funny you should mention that TanglerTKM, I did a test with my new car and guess what: The best consumption figures I can get (apart from when coasting downhill with gearbox disengaged) with my 1.9l TDI car are at... constant 75Mph!!! If I try and maintain a constant 50Mph, I lose about 7mpg!!!! Lets not forget the fact that cars are safer, more efficient, more comfortable to travel in than anything else out there these days!
And yes, there is a speed element to every RTA, without moving it is very difficult to have an accident isn't it? Not to mention that most of the 4% RTA's which have as a contributing factor excessive speeding would not be prevented by the lower speed limits on the road, given that the speeds involved are in excess of the existing speed limit anyway!
So how is lowering the speed limit going to save lives I don't know.
The other day on the telly there was an aggrieved father of an RTA victim, whilst not wanting to deny the grief he suffered, when asked how would in his case a lower speed limit have avoided the outcome (given that the perpetrator was up to his eyeballs in drink and drugs), he couldn't give an answer! Blanket bans do not work!
Now here's another point: The physics laws of fluids (Bohr) tell us that if you increase the volume of a fluid (traffic) through a fixed pipe (the road) you will create pressure (traffic jam) unless you 1) either allow the fluid to flow faster or; 2) you increase the size of the pipe (the road) or; 3) you provide additional pipes (build new roads) to take-up the extra volume. Now I haven't heard of anyone since Bohr to have found his laws as floored, I also don't think the Labour Government's policy will either! I'm quite confident of that!
Dan
|
|