I have a RANT .

[dave1949]

Try traveling somewhere outside your limited area. Out west past the Mississippi the main route mileage on 2-lane far, far outnumber interstate. I'll bet it even does in your area. Road taxes go for far more than just freeways.

People traveling on main routes under the speed limit are known as road hogs and that is the polite term we use.

Harry K

Why would I need to drive like they do somewhere else? I don't live and drive, nor have the same roads or distances they do somewhere else. Where I live the speed limit on any road is 45 mph unless posted otherwise.

Let's do the math. distance = rate X time. Time = distance /rate.

It's roughly ten miles from home to the edge of town.

10 miles / 45 mph = .22 hours
10 miles / 50 mph = .20 hours
10 miles / 55 mph = .18 hours
10 miles / 60 mph = .16 hours

.22 - .16 = .06 hours or 3.6 minutes maximum time saved--if you could actually drive 60 mph all ten miles and stay out of the trees. That's why I say it doesn't bother me if people are poking a bit on secondary roads HERE.

I think you are looking for an argument over nit pics.

 

[cqaigy2]

Why would I need to drive like they do somewhere else? I don't live and drive, nor have the same roads or distances they do somewhere else. Where I live the speed limit on any road is 45 mph unless posted otherwise.

Let's do the math. distance = rate X time. Time = distance /rate.

It's roughly ten miles from home to the edge of town.

10 miles / 45 mph = .22 hours
10 miles / 50 mph = .20 hours
10 miles / 55 mph = .18 hours
10 miles / 60 mph = .16 hours

.22 - .16 = .06 hours or 3.6 minutes maximum time saved--if you could actually drive 60 mph all ten miles and stay out of the trees. That's why I say it doesn't bother me if people are poking a bit on secondary roads HERE.

I think you are looking for an argument over nit pics.

I used to be one of those that had to do anything to get a few extra MPH. On a long trip i got bored and actually started to use my brain just a little and came with this very similar numbers as yours. I thought, what the heck? Did the math a few more times, yup, numbers were consistent and probably correct. Dang it, all the effort and less the 10 minutes in travel time.

 

[pmsmechanic]

I have often wished for a small remote controlled vehicle that I could release out of mine and run up to the vehicle ahead of me and shoot a hypodermic needle into the sidewall of their tire. The tire would go flat slowly so sudden change in the car handling. The tire would also be ruined as punishment for being a jerk on the road. I'm also sure that if everybody had those capabilities I would also occasionally have flat tires with needles in them.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Why would I need to drive like they do somewhere else? I don't live and drive, nor have the same roads or distances they do somewhere else. Where I live the speed limit on any road is 45 mph unless posted otherwise.

Let's do the math. distance = rate X time. Time = distance /rate.

It's roughly ten miles from home to the edge of town.

10 miles / 45 mph = .22 hours
10 miles / 50 mph = .20 hours
10 miles / 55 mph = .18 hours
10 miles / 60 mph = .16 hours

.22 - .16 = .06 hours or 3.6 minutes maximum time saved--if you could actually drive 60 mph all ten miles and stay out of the trees. That's why I say it doesn't bother me if people are poking a bit on secondary roads HERE.

I think you are looking for an argument over nit pics.

Local travel is not a big deal when mileage is 10-15 miles. I know, I have 2 lane roads from my house to closest towns and always run into someone travelling 40 in a 55 zone but since there is rarely a safe place to pass, traffic just backs up behind the slow poke till we get to town where the road goes to 5 lanes.

However on longer interstate distances it makes a lot of difference in how long it takes you to go 500+ miles @45-50 vs 70+

 

[Jstpssng]

I used to be one of those that had to do anything to get a few extra MPH. On a long trip i got bored and actually started to use my brain just a little and came with this very similar numbers as yours. I thought, what the heck? Did the math a few more times, yup, numbers were consistent and probably correct. Dang it, all the effort and less the 10 minutes in travel time.

How many times do you pass a vehicle, only to come up on another half a mile up the road traveling at the same speed... or look in your mirror to see the guy just turning off? I always feel stupid when I go past somebody, only to get held up so that he pulls up beside me at a red light 10 miles down the road.

 

[kevin37b]

Another of my favorite sources of entertainment is the clowns that merge onto the interstate at 50 mph , oblivious to 2 full lanes of traffic , throw the turn signal on and come right on out ! 18 wheelers , the guy reading his paper and having breakfast and the gal doing her hair passing you ,and here comes this jackleg into the equation . Or , they merge as mentioned ,you move over , and they set CC to match your speed exactly .When I took DE in high school there were yield signs on the ramps , not that it would matter today . Oh one more .Follow me 10 miles , then pass me at the busiest cloverleaf in central IL. 57 / 74 . Enough .

 

[dave1949]

Another of my favorite sources of entertainment is the clowns that merge onto the interstate at 50 mph , oblivious to 2 full lanes of traffic , throw the turn signal on and come right on out ! 18 wheelers , the guy reading his paper and having breakfast and the gal doing her hair passing you ,and here comes this jackleg into the equation . Or , they merge as mentioned ,you move over , and they set CC to match your speed exactly .When I took DE in high school there were yield signs on the ramps , not that it would matter today . Oh one more .Follow me 10 miles , then pass me at the busiest cloverleaf in central IL. 57 / 74 . Enough .

That happens a lot. It doesn't take much thinking about common courtesy to avoid that either. A lot of people just don't think.

 

[turnkey4099]

Why would I need to drive like they do somewhere else? I don't live and drive, nor have the same roads or distances they do somewhere else. Where I live the speed limit on any road is 45 mph unless posted otherwise.

Let's do the math. distance = rate X time. Time = distance /rate.

It's roughly ten miles from home to the edge of town.

10 miles / 45 mph = .22 hours
10 miles / 50 mph = .20 hours
10 miles / 55 mph = .18 hours
10 miles / 60 mph = .16 hours

.22 - .16 = .06 hours or 3.6 minutes maximum time saved--if you could actually drive 60 mph all ten miles and stay out of the trees. That's why I say it doesn't bother me if people are poking a bit on secondary roads HERE.

I think you are looking for an argument over nit pics.

Yep, for short differences it doesn't matter. But everyone on the road is not doing "short distances". It also makes no sense to travel at less than the posted (assuming conditions allow it, i.e., no snow, rain, slick or other reasons). To travel at less then the posted as a standard practice indicates that that driver doesn't care about others on the same road. Actually, and I have already said it. I have rarely seen, even on local roads, where the 'flow' is even at the posted, it is almost always higher.

Ask any driver ed instructor and he will tell you that the safest speed to travel on the road is whatever the 'flow' is.

No, not looking for an argument, just posting things that have pissed me (and others) off over many years.

Harry K

 

[Bird]

It also makes no sense to travel at less than the posted (assuming conditions allow it, i.e., no snow, rain, slick or other reasons). To travel at less then the posted as a standard practice indicates that that driver doesn't care about others on the same road.

Err, uh, what does it say on those signs? Speed LIMIT?:laughing: Yep, as most of us, you look at it as the MINIMUM when legally it's the MAXIMUM speed allowed.:laughing: While not real common, there ARE roads that also have an ACTUAL MINIMUM speed also shown; most commonly 15 to 20 mph below the MAXIMUM, I think.

But as I said, you're in the majority, looking at it as a MINIMUM.:laughing: And in my experience, most police officers will not stop a driver doing less than 10 mph over the speed limit (except in school zones) and almost none of the officers will stop drivers doing less than 5 mph over the limit (except in school zones). So, yep, I'm a law breaker, too. I set my cruise control on the speed limit, but also sometimes 2 to 4 mph over the limit.

And I suppose many people don't know that in some places, you CAN actually be cited for Impeding the Flow of Traffic, and while I've not seen it happen, I've HEARD that it CAN happen even if you are driving the speed limit; e.g., staying in the left lane of a multi-lane roadway instead of moving over to the right lane when other vehicles are behind you.

 

[timswi]

Err, uh, what does it say on those signs? Speed LIMIT?:laughing: Yep, as most of us, you look at it as the MINIMUM when legally it's the MAXIMUM speed allowed.:laughing: While not real common, there ARE roads that also have an ACTUAL MINIMUM speed also shown; most commonly 15 to 20 mph below the MAXIMUM, I think.

But as I said, you're in the majority, looking at it as a MINIMUM.:laughing: And in my experience, most police officers will not stop a driver doing less than 10 mph over the speed limit (except in school zones) and almost none of the officers will stop drivers doing less than 5 mph over the limit (except in school zones). So, yep, I'm a law breaker, too. I set my cruise control on the speed limit, but also sometimes 2 to 4 mph over the limit.

And I suppose many people don't know that in some places, you CAN actually be cited for Impeding the Flow of Traffic, and while I've not seen it happen, I've HEARD that it CAN happen even if you are driving the speed limit; e.g., staying in the left lane of a multi-lane roadway instead of moving over to the right lane when other vehicles are behind you.

PA occasionally enforces that law on the interstates...There are warning signs on the highways about this.