FARK.com: (8102879) Florida wants to raise the speeds from 70 to 75 mph on 4 lanes which is what most people drive anyway

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		Florida wants to raise the speeds from 70 to 75 mph on 4 lanes which is what most people drive anyway ( orlandosentinel.com)		88
		More: Florida, Florida Legislature, Florida Department of Transportation, speed limits, lawmakers

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ArcadianRefugee

2014-01-16 03:04:43 PM

Misconduc: there's always some jackass doing 70 in the left causing bottle neck traffic

Some jackass is doing the speed limit? How dare he!

Uh huh.

Florida already has a law that penalizes those who go 10+ miles slower than the maximum while in the left lane.

A maximum of 70 is a maximum of 70; there is no reason you need to pass someone doing 70 in the left lane. Rather, you have no legitimate room for complaint.

bingethinker

2014-01-16 03:05:11 PM

Sean M: bingethinker: Some states used to have minimum speeds posted on their freeways. ... l. But if they pushed it up to 55 minimum and actively ticketed senile idiots doing under that limit, it might get them to speed up.

In the past few months I remember coming across a geriatric who was doing ~45mph in the centre lane. That'll wake you up when you're cruising along at ~75mph.

Yep. And that assclown should be ticketed. He's far more dangerous than a speeder.

Kristoph57

2014-01-16 03:12:21 PM

Florida driving thread, and my commute home starts in 15 minutes.. north up I-275, up a short portion of 75, so I'll get a decent sampling of everything.

/wish me luck.
//probably notify my next of kin, too.

LincolnLogolas

2014-01-16 03:19:40 PM

Really? Seems to me like everyone in Floriduh prefers driving at least 20 miles UNDER the speed limit whenever I have the misfortune to travel there.

Odd Bird

2014-01-16 03:23:58 PM

hobnail: Sean M: bingethinker: Some states used to have minimum speeds posted on their freeways. ... l. But if they pushed it up to 55 minimum and actively ticketed senile idiots doing under that limit, it might get them to speed up.

In the past few months I remember coming across a geriatric who was doing ~45mph in the centre lane. That'll wake you up when you're cruising along at ~75mph.

Or, going 60 in the center lane in a 75 mph zone. At night. With on DRLs (so no tail lights).

/I threw my underwear away at the next stop.

What the hell were they thinking when those were put on cars?

hobnail

2014-01-16 03:32:12 PM

Odd Bird: What the hell were they thinking when those were put on cars?

Safety, of course. My current car has them. At least once it gets dark you have to turn the headlights on to engage the backlighting on the dash.

My wife's car doesn't have them but the dash lights are always on. So if you're in a well-lit area, it's not hard to forget to turn the lights on.

bikerbob59

2014-01-16 03:32:54 PM

Misconduc: 75? try 80-85 in the fast lane. What they need to do is keep the assholes doing under 70 to the right side and enforce it. I was driving down I-4 to tampa yesterday and bottle neck traffic because these assholes keep doing 65/70 in the left lane. They can do 70 in the middle and 65 in the right, this keeps the traffic flowing, but there's always some jackass doing 70 in the left causing bottle neck traffic and all it takes is one accident to shut down a road for an hour.

/frankly even if they raised it to 80people will still be doing 70 in the left lane, damn tourist/soccer moms/assholes

Hope you don't carry a gun.

Dr Jack Badofsky

2014-01-16 03:34:22 PM

Odd Bird: hobnail: Sean M: bingethinker: Some states used to have minimum speeds posted on their freeways. ... l. But if they pushed it up to 55 minimum and actively ticketed senile idiots doing under that limit, it might get them to speed up.

In the past few months I remember coming across a geriatric who was doing ~45mph in the centre lane. That'll wake you up when you're cruising along at ~75mph.

Or, going 60 in the center lane in a 75 mph zone. At night. With on DRLs (so no tail lights).

/I threw my underwear away at the next stop.

What the hell were they thinking when those were put on cars?

It started in Europe or Canada. The theory was that headlights on will make you more visile in daylight, like motorcycles were already required to do. Which worked against motorcycles now that they blend in with the rest of traffic, and now most cars have DRL's, it does not have the effect it used to, since it is now a norm.

the money is in the banana stand

2014-01-16 03:34:52 PM

This is my perceived problem with traffic:

1) People traveling in the left lane do not get over to let faster traffic past
2) Farking 18 wheelers and Metro buses without even remotely full loads clogging the road.
3) Inefficient entrance/exit strategies
4) Poor signage leading to lane change fiasco at interchanges
5) People who do not know how to merge or people cutting in at the last second past double lines

jmayson

2014-01-16 03:35:36 PM

So... if most people in Florida are shooting each other anyway, they might as well legalize it?

Oh wait... they did.

skozlaw

2014-01-16 03:40:24 PM

ArcadianRefugee: Some jackass is doing the speed limit? How dare he!

The implication in such a complaint is usually that said jackass has planted himself in the passing lane without actually passing anybody - which is illegal in many places, mind you - but is "justifying" his stupidity by saying he's doing the speed limit. Those people should fark off and die immediately.

That said, people who insist on stubbornly sticking to the speed limit when everybody else is driving much faster aren't a whole lot better. Divergence from the average speed, particularly those driving slower than the average, greatly increases the probability of being involved in a crash:

It's called a Solomon Curve and it's been studied again and again and upheld as a valid model again and again.

In situations where everybody else is speeding, you can either drive safely or you can drive legally. If you crash while stubbornly sticking to the limit "because that's the law", hopefully the sense of smug superiority you wrapped yourself in will help you avoid injury.

Whatchoo Talkinbout

2014-01-16 03:44:18 PM

try fect taa daa: does anyone else blare their horn at texters? I have fun with it...

Hell yes, the look of absolute shock is priceless. I secretly imagine they peed their pants and.....uh....I mean....uh.....

Kriggerel

2014-01-16 03:46:49 PM

Jesus.

The JAX-Daytona Beach section of I-95, and the Daytona-Sanford section of I-4 are terrifying enough as it is! X.x

Odd Bird

2014-01-16 03:47:30 PM

hobnail: Odd Bird: What the hell were they thinking when those were put on cars?

Safety, of course. My current car has them. At least once it gets dark you have to turn the headlights on to engage the backlighting on the dash.

My wife's car doesn't have them but the dash lights are always on. So if you're in a well-lit area, it's not hard to forget to turn the lights on.

Which makes them unsafe.
Cars with only their headlights or parking lights turned on is much too common.
Engage front and back or none.

Big Beef Burrito

2014-01-16 03:57:49 PM

They can make all the laws in the world about slow drivers in the left lanes, etc, but the only thing they ever look for is that speeding ticket revenue.

When is the last time you saw a cop car actually in traffic, monitoring all the idiotic shiat that happens? They park on the road, eat, fark around on their own cell phones, then pull someone over for speed now and then. Unsafe lane changes, old people in the left lane, cell phone yappers all go along unpunished.

slower than infinity

2014-01-16 04:02:11 PM

skinink: I average driving 75 mph. Anything above that are above my driving skills and most cars I drive anyways have poor handling above 80.

So you spend half you time driving above your driving skills?

durbnpoisn

2014-01-16 04:03:27 PM

Eh... Call me a bit paranoid, but I think the speed limits are fine the way they are. Around here, people normally go around 70 in a 55 (75 in a 65). That's fairly typical. The thing is, even at that speed, the accidents that occur are horrific!! People are just too damned reckless as it is. Give them the ability to drive even faster, and it will raise the death toll on the highways.

If their rationalization for raising the limit is that "people do it anyway", clearly they are doing a shiatty job of enforcing it. And here's the thing... If people are suddenly allowed to go faster they will. The typical 75 will become 85 pretty much instantly. Then you won't be able to enforce that either.

cgremlin

2014-01-16 04:13:48 PM

The_Six_Fingered_Man: As a person who works in Tampa and uses I-75 on occasion, people who complain about people going 75 in the left lane can eat an entire bag of phallic symbols. I am not going to open myself up to a speeding ticket just so you yahoos can get to your destination two seconds faster.

How about opening yourself up to a ticket for a violation of Florida Statutes 316.081 then? Riding in the left lane without passing someone, particularly when you're obstructing traffic, is just as much of a moving violation as speeding.

Datanerd

2014-01-16 04:22:15 PM

Kriggerel: Jesus.

The JAX-Daytona Beach section of I-95, and the Daytona-Sanford section of I-4 are terrifying enough as it is! X.x

Yes. I drive that part of I-95 four or five times a year. I live and work in the Washington Beltway, and that shiat down there scares me.

The_Six_Fingered_Man

2014-01-16 04:24:46 PM

cgremlin: The_Six_Fingered_Man: As a person who works in Tampa and uses I-75 on occasion, people who complain about people going 75 in the left lane can eat an entire bag of phallic symbols. I am not going to open myself up to a speeding ticket just so you yahoos can get to your destination two seconds faster.

How about opening yourself up to a ticket for a violation of Florida Statutes 316.081 then? Riding in the left lane without passing someone, particularly when you're obstructing traffic, is just as much of a moving violation as speeding.

Not too familiar with I-75? I can ride the left lane all day long at 75 and be passing someone. The statute that you cite even prohibits staying in the second left lane of a 4 lane highway.

Now, tell me what you have heard more of: speeding tickets, or left lane cruising tickets?

Also, the ticket resulting from a violation of 316.081 is $30. Speeding at 80-85 on a road limited at 70 results in a fine of $100. It may be "as much of a violation as speeding," but speeding carries a fine 3x more. I'll take the cruising in left lane ticket over a speeding ticket anytime.

coffeeburns

2014-01-16 04:27:48 PM

When I drive I-24 through Nashville twice a year, I average about 94mph, and I'm keeping up.

MindStalker

2014-01-16 04:36:34 PM

Dr Jack Badofsky: I disagree. People crowd the left lane because of two reasons: 1. It's the ""fast lane", and 2. People feel that thy can use the left lane to their own whimsy and not have to yield to faster traffic, which is absolutely incorrect. Not only that, but many people in #2 think that they own that lane, and no one is in any need to get to their destination any more quickly than they are. Plus, I doubt many people really pay attention to their rear view mirrors as much as they should, but there are a lot of people who don't yield when they should (and some will, actually SLOW shoulda their than move over because of their self-serving attitudes.

Someone told me a while back to put your left blinker on while following someone in the left lane as a signal that you want to pass. Tried it a few times and surprisingly it actually works.. (not all the time).

safeforwork

2014-01-16 04:41:27 PM

GAH. No. Sounds good in practice and I'm usually going 75-80 (depending on the flow of traffic, and I'm usually in the center lane and only use the left lane for passing and the right lane for exiting/going slower AS IS SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN), but there are way too many pricks who start tailgating me and flashing their lights while I'm going 85, passing everyone in the right lane, with the car in front of me barely at a safe distance. These are the same people who will pass me (usually cutting off traffic on the right to do so. IF I COULD HAVE GOTTEN SAFELY OUT OF YOUR VERY IMPORTANT WAY I WOULD HAVE DONE SO BUT AM NOT WILLING TO CAUSE AN ACCIDENT TO DO SO DAMMIT), then *SLAM* on their brakes when 20 feet ahead there's a cop... and proceed to drive 10-20 UNDER the speed limit for the next several miles.

Raise the speed limit, the pricks will just decide they need to go *even faster*

/I seem to be looking at about half of the people in this thread
//pricks

tricycleracer

2014-01-16 04:54:30 PM

80 on 275 during rush hour is keeping up with traffic.

cgremlin

2014-01-16 05:04:56 PM

The_Six_Fingered_Man: Not too familiar with I-75? I can ride the left lane all day long at 75 and be passing someone. The statute that you cite even prohibits staying in the second left lane of a 4 lane highway.

I'm quite familiar with I-75 all the way from Atlanta to Tampa, thanks, and interestingly most of the asshats I encountered obstructing traffic in the left lane had Hillsborough County plates.

Also, the ticket resulting from a violation of 316.081 is $30. Speeding at 80-85 on a road limited at 70 results in a fine of $100. It may be "as much of a violation as speeding," but speeding carries a fine 3x more. I'll take the cruising in left lane ticket over a speeding ticket anytime.

So it's okay to break the law and tie up traffic because "it's not as bad as speeding"? How about just yielding the left lane to faster traffic like you're supposed to instead?

ZzeusS

2014-01-16 05:19:44 PM

FL has a particular problem in the fact that old people in the Grand Marquis really do drive them like sht.

Slow driving. Slow turning. No headlights. No turn signals. It's the worst. Merging lanes without signaling - or frankly even looking most of the time.

If you don't live in a retiree paradise then it won't register to you. Down here is highly annoying, and something to be aware of every single time you get behind the wheel.

Dr Jack Badofsky

2014-01-16 05:46:26 PM

MindStalker: Dr Jack Badofsky: I disagree. People crowd the left lane because of two reasons: 1. It's the ""fast lane", and 2. People feel that thy can use the left lane to their own whimsy and not have to yield to faster traffic, which is absolutely incorrect. Not only that, but many people in #2 think that they own that lane, and no one is in any need to get to their destination any more quickly than they are. Plus, I doubt many people really pay attention to their rear view mirrors as much as they should, but there are a lot of people who don't yield when they should (and some will, actually SLOW shoulda their than move over because of their self-serving attitudes.

Someone told me a while back to put your left blinker on while following someone in the left lane as a signal that you want to pass. Tried it a few times and surprisingly it actually works.. (not all the time).

I've never tried that, and, really, it shouldn't come down to it, but I will in the future. I would have thought that, just like flashing your lights in their mirror, the driver in front of you would see that as "road rage", and totally derp derp derp get all Lane Police-y.

skozlaw

2014-01-16 05:52:28 PM

safeforwork: Raise the speed limit, the pricks will just decide they need to go *even faster*

That also is, generally speaking, not true. One of the most common explanations for the curve I posted above is that people are driving that fast in the first place because that's the highest speed at which they feel comfortable and able to maintain full control. In other words, people aren't just doing 75 in a 65 because they're impatient dicklicks, they're doing it because it doesn't feel dangerous or uncontrollable to them. And, considering the massive advances in car engineering since the 65 limit was set on most roads back in the late 80s, that's probably a perfectly valid way for them to feel. As a general rule, people will not raise their speeding habit along with the limit because the reason they're speeding in the first place is that they picked the speed they feel comfortable at and will stick to it.

Furthermore, there are lots of articles in the Googles about areas, especially those in the midwest, that have raised their limits and seen FEWER speeders and no more accidents.

/ no more as in "the same"
// not as in "going faster caused people to stop crashing into each other"

cloister the stupid

2014-01-16 06:40:54 PM

Dr Jack Badofsky: MindStalker: Dr Jack Badofsky: I disagree. People crowd the left lane because of two reasons: 1. It's the ""fast lane", and 2. People feel that thy can use the left lane to their own whimsy and not have to yield to faster traffic, which is absolutely incorrect. Not only that, but many people in #2 think that they own that lane, and no one is in any need to get to their destination any more quickly than they are. Plus, I doubt many people really pay attention to their rear view mirrors as much as they should, but there are a lot of people who don't yield when they should (and some will, actually SLOW shoulda their than move over because of their self-serving attitudes.

Someone told me a while back to put your left blinker on while following someone in the left lane as a signal that you want to pass. Tried it a few times and surprisingly it actually works.. (not all the time).

I've never tried that, and, really, it shouldn't come down to it, but I will in the future. I would have thought that, just like flashing your lights in their mirror, the driver in front of you would see that as "road rage", and totally derp derp derp get all Lane Police-y.

Maybe I am just getting old but I've never seen anyone move when you try and indicate that they need to let you pass so I don't even bother. At best they will just ignore the signal but usually the person will see it and then start doing stupid things to screw with you which leads to even worse results.

Sure it sucks but backing off and waiting for them to move however it is a lot better then invoking the wrath of some idiot who shouldn't have their license to begin with.

safeforwork

2014-01-16 08:21:55 PM

cloister the stupid: Dr Jack Badofsky: MindStalker: Dr Jack Badofsky: I disagree. People crowd the left lane because of two reasons: 1. It's the ""fast lane", and 2. People feel that thy can use the left lane to their own whimsy and not have to yield to faster traffic, which is absolutely incorrect. Not only that, but many people in #2 think that they own that lane, and no one is in any need to get to their destination any more quickly than they are. Plus, I doubt many people really pay attention to their rear view mirrors as much as they should, but there are a lot of people who don't yield when they should (and some will, actually SLOW shoulda their than move over because of their self-serving attitudes.

Someone told me a while back to put your left blinker on while following someone in the left lane as a signal that you want to pass. Tried it a few times and surprisingly it actually works.. (not all the time).

I've never tried that, and, really, it shouldn't come down to it, but I will in the future. I would have thought that, just like flashing your lights in their mirror, the driver in front of you would see that as "road rage", and totally derp derp derp get all Lane Police-y.

Maybe I am just getting old but I've never seen anyone move when you try and indicate that they need to let you pass so I don't even bother. At best they will just ignore the signal but usually the person will see it and then start doing stupid things to screw with you which leads to even worse results.

Sure it sucks but backing off and waiting for them to move however it is a lot better then invoking the wrath of some idiot who shouldn't have their license to begin with.

I will move over if someone flashes their lights or puts their left blinker on... if it's possible. Please do keep in mind the conditions of the traffic ahead when you try to get someone to move over. If they're in the left lane going slower than the traffic to the right and no one is in front of them, then by all means: flash lights away. If they're going faster than the right lanes and there's a car less than two car lengths in front of them and they're already going 15 MPH over the speed limit... for fark's sake, just slow down for a second. And don't get so close to their bumper the front of your car wouldn't show in their rearview mirror. That's not going to make them go faster or magically open a spot for them to get over, nor will it for the person in front of them, or the one in front of *them*, etc, either.

And yes: cars DO go more over the speed limit as the speed limit goes higher. If you drive the I-4->I-275 corridor the speed limit fluctuates from 55mph to 70mph. To flow with traffic, I have to be going 70+ in the 55 and... have to move to the slowest lane in the 70, because my little car doesn't like going over 85. A few years ago in my land yacht I tried to keep up with the left-lane flow and pegged out at 120 and still had people passing me or flashing at me to get over.

Of course, this isn't during rush hour. During rush hour you're lucky to be moving at all... and when you finally get through the jam it's a good percent of the time caused by a little sports car smashed by a big truck, plain as day it happened when the sports car decided to pass someone on the right, but big trucks can't slam or swerve easily to get out of the way when cut off...

People here are absolutely insane already... they don't need encouragement.

That said: I would be in favor of the speed limits being higher in the more rural stretches of interstate. But places in larger towns where there's a ton of traffic getting on and off the interstate from both sides? No way.

Igor Jakovsky

2014-01-16 08:48:56 PM

I take I95 for about 10 miles on my way to work everyday. Yesterday i happen to look up at my rearview mirror and see some asshole on a crotchrocket weaving in and out of traffic. I was going 80ish and he blew past me probably at around 100. I was hoping to see his dumbass pulled over before i exited. I wouldnt have been surprised if he ended up as a red stain on the highway either.

Today it was an asshole in an suv doing the same shiat while talking on his cell phone.

Sometimes i wish there were more troopers out there to deal with jackasses like that.

Where i live north of palm beach we are flooded with yankees and canadians this time of year. These are the types that will stop at the top of the entrance ramp rather than merge into traffic. They also tend to drive under the speed limit. Raising the speed limit wont help that.

I usually go around 80 on the interstate. If you get caught going 15 or more over it is considered a more serious violation and you get more points and it costs more $$$$. I dont need to get anywhere that fast.

/end rant

Livinglush

2014-01-16 08:52:35 PM

GBB: Misconduc: 75? try 80-85 in the fast lane. What they need to do is keep the assholes doing under 70 to the right side and enforce it. I was driving down I-4 to tampa yesterday and bottle neck traffic because these assholes keep doing 65/70 in the left lane. They can do 70 in the middle and 65 in the right, this keeps the traffic flowing, but there's always some jackass doing 70 in the left causing bottle neck traffic and all it takes is one accident to shut down a road for an hour.

/frankly even if they raised it to 80people will still be doing 70 in the left lane, damn tourist/soccer moms/assholes

Ever notice that the right lane is almost always empty, if not sparse?
I was on I4 this morning at 4:50 and saw a guy get on and moved straight into the middle lane. There was absolutely no one ahead.

I stay in the right lane, and I drive fast. If anyone is upset that I'm passing on the right, I will gladly point out that if they were in the right lane, I would have been forced to pass on the left. But, seeing as how they were in the wrong lane, passing on the right was their decision, not mine.

They can be as upset as they want, but FL has no "keep right pass left" law, passing on the right is legal.

PaLarkin

2014-01-16 09:00:53 PM

I agree. Where I live the highways are full of truck drivers doing 10 or 20 under the speed limit side by side so nobody can pass them. Get the fark out of the way and let other people go by. I would like to see asshats who hold up traffic ticketed and fined just like the cops do to people driving too fast. People going too slow and holding up traffic can cause wrecks just like people going too fast.

Livinglush

2014-01-16 09:24:39 PM

jesdynf: I drive at the speed limit, and sometimes I drive in the left lane. Depends on conditions, and what I need to do.

You're welcome to state your opinion about that policy, but you should understand that if your opinion doesn't come with either new laws that adjust the speed limit in the left-hand lane, or an offer to indemnify me against tickets for speeding or insurance hikes, that your opinion is neither new to me nor relevant.

How about the common sense of keep right / pass left? Law in over 30 states, common sense in 50.

Livinglush

2014-01-16 09:33:38 PM

Big Beef Burrito: They can make all the laws in the world about slow drivers in the left lanes, etc, but the only thing they ever look for is that speeding ticket revenue.

When is the last time you saw a cop car actually in traffic, monitoring all the idiotic shiat that happens? They park on the road, eat, fark around on their own cell phones, then pull someone over for speed now and then. Unsafe lane changes, old people in the left lane, cell phone yappers all go along unpunished.

In NJ, they still ticket people for improper passing and improper lane changes. I love in FL now and wish the NJ cops would spend some time down here.

Livinglush

2014-01-16 09:36:40 PM

durbnpoisn: Eh... Call me a bit paranoid, but I think the speed limits are fine the way they are. Around here, people normally go around 70 in a 55 (75 in a 65). That's fairly typical. The thing is, even at that speed, the accidents that occur are horrific!! People are just too damned reckless as it is. Give them the ability to drive even faster, and it will raise the death toll on the highways.

If their rationalization for raising the limit is that "people do it anyway", clearly they are doing a shiatty job of enforcing it. And here's the thing... If people are suddenly allowed to go faster they will. The typical 75 will become 85 pretty much instantly. Then you won't be able to enforce that either.

Actually studies prove the opposite. The bulk of drivers will typically drive speeds they feel are safe, and when speed limits rise the largest change seen is in the slowest 20% of drivers, which serves to make a safer highway. It's one of the main justifications for this speed limit rise.

Dr Jack Badofsky

2014-01-16 10:09:33 PM

safeforwork: cloister the stupid: Dr Jack Badofsky: MindStalker: Dr Jack Badofsky: I disagree. People crowd the left lane because of two reasons: 1. It's the ""fast lane", and 2. People feel that thy can use the left lane to their own whimsy and not have to yield to faster traffic, which is absolutely incorrect. Not only that, but many people in #2 think that they own that lane, and no one is in any need to get to their destination any more quickly than they are. Plus, I doubt many people really pay attention to their rear view mirrors as much as they should, but there are a lot of people who don't yield when they should (and some will, actually SLOW shoulda their than move over because of their self-serving attitudes.

Someone told me a while back to put your left blinker on while following someone in the left lane as a signal that you want to pass. Tried it a few times and surprisingly it actually works.. (not all the time).

I've never tried that, and, really, it shouldn't come down to it, but I will in the future. I would have thought that, just like flashing your lights in their mirror, the driver in front of you would see that as "road rage", and totally derp derp derp get all Lane Police-y.

Maybe I am just getting old but I've never seen anyone move when you try and indicate that they need to let you pass so I don't even bother. At best they will just ignore the signal but usually the person will see it and then start doing stupid things to screw with you which leads to even worse results.

Sure it sucks but backing off and waiting for them to move however it is a lot better then invoking the wrath of some idiot who shouldn't have their license to begin with.

I will move over if someone flashes their lights or puts their left blinker on... if it's possible. Please do keep in mind the conditions of the traffic ahead when you try to get someone to move over. If they're in the left lane going slower than the traffic to the right and no one is in front of them, then by all means: flash lights away. If they're going faster than the right lanes and there's a car less than two car lengths in front of them and they're already going 15 MPH over the speed limit... for fark's sake, just slow down for a second. And don't get so close to their bumper the front of your car wouldn't show in their rearview mirror. That's not going to make them go faster or magically open a spot for them to get over, nor will it for the person in front of them, or the one in front of *them*, etc, either.

And yes: cars DO go more over the speed limit as the speed limit goes higher. If you drive the I-4->I-275 corridor the speed limit fluctuates from 55mph to 70mph. To flow with traffic, I have to be going 70+ in the 55 and... have to move to the slowest lane in the 70, because my little car doesn't like going over 85. A few years ago in my land yacht I tried to keep up with the left-lane flow and pegged out at 120 and still had people passing me or flashing at me to get over.

Of course, this isn't during rush hour. During rush hour you're lucky to be moving at all... and when you finally get through the jam it's a good percent of the time caused by a little sports car smashed by a big truck, plain as day it happened when the sports car decided to pass someone on the right, but big trucks can't slam or swerve easily to get out of the way when cut off...

People here are absolutely insane already... they don't need encouragement.

That said: I would be in favor of the speed limits being higher in the more rural stretches of interstate. But places in larger towns where there's a ton of traffic getting on and off the interstate from both sides? No way.

Point taken, and if I see more than one car in line, I will fall in line (probably cursing the guy in position no. 1) and wait, but still expect the front car that be more aware/respectful, and more so expect no. 1 to see what's behind and do SOMETHING instead of keep pace with the Schneider truck next to him. People think it's major no-no to speed up until you pass the car on the right, but police will understand that and ignore that. I was getting pulled over in NY on I-86 (I had already been nabbed), and was next to a semi when he put me up. In order to get by, I went FASTER than the speed he tagged me for. He ignored that completely and we had our exchange down the road. FWIW, he let me go (college student going back to SUNY Alfred) with a "broken speedo" ticket and about $80 in fines. No points. The cop was really cool, especially since I had a case of empties (under age) and a whiff if beer on my breath (roadside test ended when I rattled off ABC's in 2 seconds).

Sorry for lengthy post, but I'm on a smartphone.

Dr Jack Badofsky

2014-01-16 10:10:17 PM

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