Speed limits – who benefits?
Do you feel persecuted because you drive a car?
Our Home Secretary and the Archbishop of Canterbury, have recently been ‘nicked’ for speeding. They have my sympathy. It’s getting harder to focus on the road rather than the speedometer as new speed limits on once familiar roads seem to be sprouting overnight.
I’ve always thought the 30 mph speed limit was sensible for residential areas, but 20 mph stretches seem to be a new fashion. Whether they’re valid or not, at least I understand the reasoning.
Sensible speed limits
My problem, and I ‘m not alone in this I find, is that it’s harder to concentrate at 20 than at 30. A short stretch at 20 mph near a school is fine, but when the 20 zone replaces the 30 for prolonged stretches I must question the motives. I’ve also noticed that national speed limit roads now seem to sport 50 mph signs often for no apparent reason. Modern cars are so effective at insulating you from your surroundings that 20 mph ‘seems’ like you’re just crawling along.
One thing that many of these stretches of road have in common are big speed camera warning signs. These signs imply a threat of instant points and fines for otherwise law abiding transgressors.
Average speed limit zones.
I like the concept of the average speed limit monitoring zones. In theory, they trap the ‘real speeders’ but make allowances for the vast majority of the road users. Many ordinarily law abiding motorists quite innocently go a bit faster simply because we’re all human!
ULEZ zones, are not an inherently bad idea, but they tend to proliferate without good reason. There are unintended consequences suffered by residents and visitors alike.
The fact is that for most journeys whatever the speed limits, your time to destination will hardly vary from day to day. The secret is to keep moving, so enjoy your motoring while you still can!
That’s it, except for our now familiar message.
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