🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1994Jan17.203539.23473@alw.nih.gov>
pruss@helix.nih.gov (dmitry pruss) writes:
 
>
>In article <2hepl3$l1p@access.digex.net> jb@access.digex.net (John) writes:
>>Jonathan Hazzard <thonhazz@clark.net> wrote:
>>
>>We need higher speed limits, many of the cars on the road today are
>>competent at higher speeds, and the interstates were built to accomadate
>>1970's technology vehicles at 70 mph.  The problem is the poor to
>>non-existent education required to obtain a license.  By knowing the
>>consequences of dangerous driving and by properly training people to
>>MERGE (my little pet peave) I think we could safely set speed limits at 65+.
>
>Apparently, both of them drive at a far-from-average speed, so the
>first-level conclusion is that legalizing an average speeed won't affect
>the things.
>
I don't quite understand why people feel that speed limits unduly infringe
on their rights.  The U.S. has a very safe surface transportation system.
Within that system the safest mile that you can drive is on an interstate
where there is, on average, slightly over one fatality per 100 million
vehicle miles.  This is several times safer than your basic picturesque
country road.  It is also much safer than Western Europe.  The U.S. ranks
third in highway safety behind Sweden (I think, but it may be one of the
other Scandinavian countries) and Great Britain.
 
Recent studies have indicated that, in fact, states that increased speed
limits from 55 to 65 on rural interstates around 1987 do experience an
increase in fatalities.  While the total number of fatalities has been
dropping quickly both in total deaths and deaths per vehicle mile traveled,
deaths on interstates have shown a gradual increase in both measures.  My
personal theory is that this results from violation of the traffic
engineering mantra "Uniformity is safety".  When the speed limit increased,
most drivers stayed pretty much with 65 (even where speed limits remained
at 55).  This is no longer the case, with significant numbers of people
beating the speed limit by 15 - 20 miles per hour.
 
I do agree with the opinions about the need for driver education and
training.
 
One other thing:  Although deaths are decreasing for autos, we as a country
still kill about 40,000 people annually, with a disproportionate number
being young men.  Even with the Amtrak wrecks in '93, they killed fewer
per passenger mile.  Air carriers are even safer.  However, when rail or
air carriers do have fatalities, a great cry goes up for government
intervention (read spending) and people saying that they will never
[fly | take the train] again.  The question is when will we realize that
the purpose of most driving is to get from place to place and take our
recreational driving and expressions of frustration to appropriate places?
 
Dwight Shank
The MITRE Corp. and U of Md Transportation Engineering.