US To Have Same Limits As Germany's Autobahn?

Vandal said:
On another note . . .

. . . were are the remaining locations in the world where there are no posted speed limits? Is northern Australia still unlimited?
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Isle of Mann has no speed limits outside of the villages.
 
I think it's time to scrap, or at least reform the nonsense, overly bureaucratic EU and replace it with a body that has MUCH less power, is a LOT smaller and doesn?t eat up so much money.

I don?t think the EU is a bad idea in principle but like most things it?s poorly implemented.
 
Since America is so fucking huge (we have 4 states that are alone larger than Germany), there's no choice but to make roads very, very long and straight. As a result, having Autobahn speeds is a VERY bad idea (remember, the Autobahn is nearly completely curved).
 
upyourego said:
Although my father in law who lives in the Isle of Man and is very politically active tells me there is growing support for the introduction of speed limits from various politicians.
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:cry:
 
Viper007Bond said:
Since America is so fucking huge (we have 4 states that are alone larger than Germany), there's no choice but to make roads very, very long and straight. As a result, having Autobahn speeds is a VERY bad idea (remember, the Autobahn is nearly completely curved).
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Yes the tunnel-syndrome caused by our runway style interstates is problematic in that regard but as someone who drives cross-country rather frequently, I can tell you that having a 65 mph limit is a very bad idea as well. One gets tired very quickly, boredom and complacency affects your ability to pay attention to unexpected, to the road ahead and other cars around you. And your time spent on the road is twice what it should have been therefore adding to the amount of cars on the highway at any given time.

Driving down I-95 in CT @75 I have a hard time keeping up with the most of the traffic, most of the time. Yet nobody's crashing, braking hard or acting "retarded". They just drive and get along just fine. Most cops won't even bother you unless they have a budget pinch cause it is just pointless. 95% of drivers break the law, and that does not mean drivers are bad - the law's just plain ol' stupid and unfit for population at large it's supposed to serve.

It also creates a dangerous situation where a lower limit might be imposed for valid reason and people just ignore them 'cause they're used to the limits being posted for no reason at all. Additionally, instead of paying attention to road and traffic one is on a constant lookout for cops. And when those show up, this is when trouble starts. Countless times have I seen rear-endings and sideswipes because the driver ahead suddenly spotted a cruiser at the side of the road. Dangerous shit. It is also apparent that on the routes that are traditionally "fast" people are noticeably more courteous to one another.

It'd be a sad thing for Germany to cave in if only for principal reasons. I'm sure there are huge traffic problems there as well but such as they are, it is the last beckon of hope for drivers everywhere.

JMO of course.
 
? 5 Abs. 5 StVO
(5) Au?erhalb geschlossener Ortschaften darf das ?berholen durch kurze Schall- oder Leuchtzeichen angek?ndigt werden.
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D-Fence said:
As soon as I pass 140km/h, my Foglights are switched on
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it is. 8)
 
Viper007Bond said:
Since America is so fucking huge (we have 4 states that are alone larger than Germany), there's no choice but to make roads very, very long and straight. As a result, having Autobahn speeds is a VERY bad idea (remember, the Autobahn is nearly completely curved).
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I have to disagree. You've obviously never been out to West Texas - where speed is the only way you're going to get anywhere in a day.

Also, it should also be mentioned that the original US Interstate Highway system, constructed in the 50s (called the Eisenhower system after the President who rammed it through Congress) was designed *specifically* for a 100mph limit. In other words, every mile of the original Interstate system, which includes I-10 and I-20, was designed in such a way that a car using 1950s technology could safely cruise at 100mph. Modern technology only ups that number.

And yet we still have 80mph limits, even on the best maintained stretches of the highway.

un-dee said:
Err... where the hell did you get that information from. We bullied other countries into changing? Seriously mate, that is utter bullshit.
Germany is and was always the largest payer of the EU, we always paid a lot more than everyone else and get only a tiny amount of it back.
Despite having more citizens than any other EU country we dont get more votes than the other ones, in the most important organ it is that every country has one vote, so we lose big on that too.
Seriously, before making such wild claims be sure to check your information.
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Well, let's see. Just one example should be enough. After investing in EADS/Airbus, Germany conducted economic warfare and ran Fokker Aircraft Industries in Holland out of business, so as to not have competition for *their* jobs program.

I could cite many more examples, but I doubt that a) you would want to hear them, or b) that you'd believe me anyway. I happen to have a lot of relatives in Europe and I stay in touch with them as well as the news in Europe.

RoamingGnome said:
Driving down I-95 in CT @75 I have a hard time keeping up with the most of the traffic, most of the time. Yet nobody's crashing, braking hard or acting "retarded". They just drive and get along just fine. Most cops won't even bother you unless they have a budget pinch cause it is just pointless. 95% of drivers break the law, and that does not mean drivers are bad - the law's just plain ol' stupid and unfit for population at large it's supposed to serve.

It also creates a dangerous situation where a lower limit might be imposed for valid reason and people just ignore them 'cause they're used to the limits being posted for no reason at all. Additionally, instead of paying attention to road and traffic one is on a constant lookout for cops. And when those show up, this is when trouble starts. Countless times have I seen rear-endings and sideswipes because the driver ahead suddenly spotted a cruiser at the side of the road. Dangerous shit. It is also apparent that on the routes that are traditionally "fast" people are noticeably more courteous to one another.
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Exactly so. Some days on I-635 here in Dallas the traffic cruises at an average speed of about 85mph despite the posted limit being 65. And on the two tollways we have here, there have been days where the fast lane *was* the 100mph lane.
 
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I know Wikipedia is a pretty bad source, but its the fastest I could be bothered to find.
Initially sales of the Fokker 100 were good, leading Fokker to begin development of the Fokker 70, a smaller version of the F100, in 1991. But sales of the F70 were below expectations and the F100 had strong competition from Boeing and Airbus by now.

In 1992, after a long and arduous negotiation process, Fokker signed an agreement with DASA. But this did not solve Fokker's problems, mostly because DASA's parent company Daimler-Benz also had to deal with its own organizational problems.

Bankruptcy
On January 22, 1996, the Board of Directors of Daimler-Benz decided to focus on its core automobile business and cut ties with Fokker. The next day an Amsterdam court extended temporary creditor protection. On March 15 the Fokker company was declared bankrupt.
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Its not that they were a flourishing company before.
Really, we are not that evil. Just try to cut your prejudices.

Concerning the speed limit in America thing, I doubt that straight roads would be a problem, because you focus a lot more on driving when going faster. But as I saw it in the US, I don't think it would be a good idea to remove them, because, no offence there, but it appeared to me that many drivers there didn't seem to have an idea how to stick to the most simple rules of driving. Also you would have to go back to an "only pass on the left"-system and the whole way the Interstates are built with merging lanes sometimes, etc would not work with such high speeds.
You also don't drive higher speeds to cover great distances, its not that we drive from Hamburg to Munich with 250 all the time, because fuel economy gets rather poor and it is very tiring to drive faster than 200 for a long time.
 
un-dee said:
Concerning the speed limit in America thing, I doubt that straight roads would be a problem, because you focus a lot more on driving when going faster. But as I saw it in the US, I don't think it would be a good idea to remove them, because, no offence there, but it appeared to me that many drivers there didn't seem to have an idea how to stick to the most simple rules of driving. Also you would have to go back to an "only pass on the left"-system and the whole way the Interstates are built with merging lanes sometimes, etc would not work with such high speeds.
You also don't drive higher speeds to cover great distances, its not that we drive from Hamburg to Munich with 250 all the time, because fuel economy gets rather poor and it is very tiring to drive faster than 200 for a long time.
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Oh, no argument on the need for better driver training.

That said, many states are in the process of improving that, or starting to enforce laws that have been lax before. In Texas, for example, slower traffic is required by law to keep right (except for the rare left exit) and passing is to be conducted on the left. Unfortunately, we have a lot of idiots who don't pay attention to that and the police don't write nearly enough tickets for that.

Just to make it clear - I am not advocating that speed limits be abolished on US roads. I am advocating that speed limits need to be set for safety reasons, real safety reasons, and not for BS environmental or revenue-generation reasons (which is how they're often set now).

There are large swaths of Interstate here in Texas where it is perfectly safe to do 200mph. There are also places where 55mph is far too fast.
 
un-dee said:
Concerning the speed limit in America thing, I doubt that straight roads would be a problem, because you focus a lot more on driving when going faster. But as I saw it in the US, I don't think it would be a good idea to remove them, because, no offence there, but it appeared to me that many drivers there didn't seem to have an idea how to stick to the most simple rules of driving. Also you would have to go back to an "only pass on the left"-system and the whole way the Interstates are built with merging lanes sometimes, etc would not work with such high speeds.
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Though a fair assessment it does have a lot to do with reality of driving in the US. It really isn't that we don't know how to drive "properly", there is just no need to and to make it worse we're not being officially taught how to drive safely. Speed Kills is the motto and the only way to be safe is to go slow. So unlike the German counterparts', our popular approach to driving is more leisurely, you know, cup holders, sandwiches, screaming kids in the back cause it's not like we're allowed to actually enjoy the drive. There is no argument that our driver's ed is seriously lacking and should definitely be improved by a magnitude of 10. But why bother. Speed Kills. Go Slow.

Like I said before, if you go on traditionally fast roads, you will notice that the same lame Americans are behaving differently. This may not be Germany but the difference is fairly noticeable with no other conditions present.
 
Spectre said:
Well, let's see. Just one example should be enough. After investing in EADS/Airbus, Germany conducted economic warfare and ran Fokker Aircraft Industries in Holland out of business, so as to not have competition for *their* jobs program.
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in which way was "germany" responsible for this?

as far as i know it was daimler, led by schrempp who bought fokker and then let it die.
 
un-dee said:
Yeah but driving like a dick is... especially in a Seat Ibiza... I sense some overestimation there :p
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The main problem is, that with my 75 raging horses, I actually still am one of the fastest guys around on the left lane, most people only do like 120-130 on the left lane, which SUCKS when you want to go faster.....and I don?t tailgate, I........just give them a warning from the distance :)
 
Vandal said:
. . . were are the remaining locations in the world where there are no posted speed limits? Is northern Australia still unlimited?
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No:( It's now 130kmh. But seriously, it's so isolated and hardly any cops driving around, you could easily go much faster. Just like driving thru the Nullabor, the limit is 110kmh but a friend who lives there says everyone cruise at about 150.
 
There are still a few places in the US with no posted speed limit.
 
jetsetter said:
There are still a few places in the US with no posted speed limit.
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No sign actually posted, or an actual sign that says "no speed limits" or has the international sign for no speed limits?

There is a standard speed you have to go if there is no speed limit posted. Most of California it's 25, though I think there is a different regulation on the highways/interstates. Here in Missouri most towns like to shove you down to 20 or less.

D-Fence said:
The main problem is, that with my 75 raging horses, I actually still am one of the fastest guys around on the left lane, most people only do like 120-130 on the left lane, which SUCKS when you want to go faster.....and I don?t tailgate, I........just give them a warning from the distance :)
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Wait...there are cars still being made with less than 100hp? With the weight of most new cars that has got to be an extremely depressing car to drive.
 
if you wanna take the most boring route there is in all of america. just drive down I95 from NY to FL... 1000 miles of ishityounot pin hair straight roads. the limit is 70. but that fluctuates from 70 to 55 Without warning! and cops are all over it like flies on sh!t
 
thedguy said:
Here in Missouri most towns like to shove you down to 20 or less.



Wait...there are cars still being made with less than 100hp? With the weight of most new cars that has got to be an extremely depressing car to drive.
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I've noticed many towns will have a sign posted with the city limit sign that says something to the effect that X is the speed limit, unless otherwise posted.

Most counties in Missouri have a speed limit that applies to all county roads unless otherwise posted. For example here in Jasper County it's 55 (or 60 depending on who you talk to). Though most of these roads have been getting 45 or even 35 signs.

Of course we all speed, some more than others. I personally don't like to go over more than 5. Most cops won't bother you at that speed. The road I travel the most you can go almost as fast as you like, there is rarely any cops. However, it's a fairly dangerous road in that they repaved it a few years back and left a 2 inch drop to the soft shoulder. I've seen many accidents where a car goes off the road, then over corrects trying to get back and spins out through a fence or ditch. One instance a Toyota Tercel spun out and ended up in oncoming traffic, then was rear ended by a Chevy pickup. The two in the Toyota where killed, the people in the truck only had minor injuries.
 
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