Anti-car extremists driving Big Brother to watch Britain's roads?
The Association of British Drivers (ABD) has itself in a total tizzy over a proposal to limit speeds on rural single carriageways to 80 kilometers per hour (50 mph). If that wasn't enough blasphemy to begin a barrage of bellicosity, they say the government plans to enforce this "speed bully" policy with a blanket of average speed cameras along the nations byways. At whose feet does the ABD lay the blame for this attempt at a national standard? Their elected representatives? The insurance lobby? The highway camera league (I made that one up)? Nope. They hold "anti-car extremists" responsible and to drive home their point they offer a 1995 quote (with no context) from Friends of the Earth (FOE), "speed limits should be made very low and rigidly enforced to take all the glamour out of motoring".Perhaps environmentalists would like to see a drop in pollution and CO2 levels as a result of slower speeds, but blaming people who care about the eco-systems that keep us all alive for every impingement of perceived liberty is getting a little old. Seriously. No one, not even "greenies," enjoys being forced to drive slower than they want to and cameras alongside roads the length and breadth of Britain would not only be outrageously expensive but also really creepy. Perhaps the ABD would do better to avail themselves of the public comment period regarding the proposal and leave the hollow rhetoric for political discussions. Oh wait, this is the ABD we're talking about.
[Source: Association of British Drivers]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Dave 6:20PM (3/09/2009)
Actually all this morning's press was blaming this on road safety (50mph you apparently kill less people) and not lower CO2. They all know lower CO2 and lower speed is old hat.
By the way, cars up to 2 tonnes limited to 60mph. Does that mean Fisker et all have to do 50?
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Herm 8:12PM (3/09/2009)
This is England you vote a liberal ninny in ... oh wait we did the same thing :)
Reduce the speed down to 30mph and you would see a lot of electric bikes and rickshaws.
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kballs 10:33PM (3/09/2009)
Lowering speed has little effect on emissions and fuel economy (in fact makes it worse for ICE vehicles when the speed is lowered below 40mph).
Safety? Why not lower the speed to 5mph on all roads? You'd almost eliminate the death rate! If we can save one life, we should do it! Better yet, we should mandate the installation of spikes on the steering wheel 1 inch from drivers' chests, then nobody will drive quickly or recklessly.
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Scatter 8:05AM (3/10/2009)
Contrary to the comments posted above there is a strong correlation between speed and fuel consumption (and therefore emissions). Emissions per km bottom out at between about 45 and 55mph so this change makes a lot of sense.
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