I think in most cases, the speed limits in place are perfectly suitable for the road. The 70mph on motorways is fine and *most* will use common sense to determine what speed they should travel at, with 70 being a sort of *safe* speed with a bit of buffer.
However there are some rather straight roads near where I live that are and should be 30mph due to the houses, parks and pavements that they run alongside of. The wide, straight road is often an attraction for racers and accidents happen. One of the roads has employed cameras on both sides which has helped immensly.
I think there just needs to be better training on control and stopping and a realisation of just how long it takes to stop a car for the average person. I don't know if increasing speed limits will reduce congestion, though I remember a sketch by a comedian I don't remember who pondered the effect of placing the temporary speed restrictions on motorways during accidents/etc. to 70 instead of 40 so that instead of slowing down, everyone would just zip past. Perhaps they should just make lorries less tall and more stable so they wouldn't always overturn themselves.
Are there speed limits on water and in the air? |