Subject: The great speed and safety myth

From: [email-masked] (David Crooke)
Date: Fri, 23 Jun 1995 18:23:04 GMT

Here in Britain, police peddle the story that virtually any road
accident is due to speeding, and that if we all obeyed the arbitrary
posted speed limits we'd be safe. "Speed Kills" says the slogan.
In a technical sense they're right; if no-one drove anywhere (i.e.
speed = 0) then there'd be no accidents.

My belief is that almost all accidents are caused by bad driving - failing
to pay attention, being too close to the car in front, using a car
phone with one hand and taking notes with the other, etc.

A recent study made by a university daan saaf showed a 40% reduction in
the "unexplained accident" rate on a stretch of motorway when they set up
a rest area in a layby and encouraged people to stop for a free tea /
coffee; they believe that many such accidents are caused by drivers
falling asleep at the wheel.

The police are having a massive campaign against speed - Gatso cameras are
the latest craze, but most go on main trunk roads in the countryside and
not on suburban streets. Speed is an easy target; you can't measure
incompetence, and politicians love these schemes because they're so cheap
to run - a Gatso on a busy London urban motorway or bypass road will pay
for itself within days.

So, in the next century will we all be driving mega torque electric sports
vehicles with speed limiters controlled by roadside transmitters, that
take you from rest to the speed limit with spine crushing acceleration
then force you to potter along, being overtaken by Mad Max on a bicycle?

Dave
-- 
David Crooke, Department of Computer Science, University of Edinburgh
Janet [email-masked]  :  Internet [email-masked]  :  IP talk [email-masked]
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From: [email-masked] (Dirk Broer)
Date: 26 Jun 1995 09:33 EST

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (Steve Sheldon) writes...
>In <[email-masked]> [email-masked] (David Crooke) writes:
> 
> There was a guy from the US Insurance Institute the other day on NPR who
>stated that when the speed limit went from 55 to 65 on rural interstates the
>accident rate went up 20%.
> 
> I was rather surprised.
> 

Yeah, from 5 people getting killed to 6 - an extra person in the car....

Bottom line - any change in death rate is basically statistically meaningless.  
Car and Driver published reports that said in all but like two states the death 
rate went down.  Also now, years after the change, the death right continues to 
decline.

The insurance companies don't want higher speed limits.  That means less 
tickets, which in turn means less revenue for them.  Hard as it may seem to 
believe, but they are in the business to make a profit.

Dirk