Why isn't there any more talk about a low national speed limit.

[.... callchet ....]

A 40 mph national speed limit would save lives, save fuel, save injuries. Save a lot of things. I lived through 55MPH and it wasn't bad.

[babylonsister]

1. Who ARE you? You really think 40 mph is a good thing? nt

[.... callchet ....]

5. Absolutely, what is wrong with it.

It would have no negative results.

[babylonsister]

10. Have you ever tried to get to work in a city? Living in the 'burbs? I think not. nt

[.... callchet ....]

11. We talk about what we have to do to

save the planet, but we can't find a way to deal with a lower speed limit. When more and more of the energy efficient cars hit the roads, it is going to be mass carnage if we don't lower the speed limits to account for them.

[CRF450]

21. Cars are at their best efficiency running at 70mph

Compared to stop and go driving where 35 or 40mph limits are usually at. I'm sorry but I'd rather set the cruise at 70mph than to putt along at 40mph on an open road.

[Duckhunter935]

26. where are you?

In west Texas it already takes us hours to get anywhere at 75 or 80. Lets just double that time and also have more people fall asleep driving

[Captain Hilts]

2. Because it's one of the things that killed Carter's presidency. nt

[.... callchet ....]

7. What killed Carter

was that he was too nice of a guy. He was fair and honest and smart. Naval Officer on nuclear sub. Ethical.

[Captain Hilts]

8. My dad was a sub skipper...

and he feared that as one of Rickover's devotees that Carter would have flexibility and leadership issues.

Dad was right.

[MADem]

28. Your dad was right. Smart man. Those Rickover acolytes were strange mothers.

Flexibility and leadership...that's it in a nutshell. A shred of unreasonable stubbornness, too, most likely as a consequence of the inflexibility.

Rickover liked 'em if they JUMPED when he bellowed.

Screw that--yes, it's important in an operational environment to follow orders rapidly, particularly when the issue is structural integrity or defense of your vessel, but absent that, you want people under you who know how to exercise a little discretion and who aren't fearful of telling you when you're about to step in a massive pile of shit. A little "loyal opposition" is a good thing in a subordinate--it keeps you on your toes and prevents you from getting lazy or complacent.

It's not for the martinets, or those with low self-esteem, though. Those types have a need to be worshipped, and they're the worst possible bosses in the world.

[babylonsister]

15. And I thought he was still alive and well. DAMN! nt

[.... callchet ....]

16. You haven't seen weekend at Jimmy's ?

[villager]

3. Well, there's lots of talk about getting people out of cars entirely, or at least reduce use

...if we can get a decent national rail system.

That would accomplish most of the things you mention.

[Idealism]

4. 40 mph?! Who do you think I am, Jeff Gordon?

:sarcasm:

[MADem]

6. Well, that's pretty asinine. Why not go back to horses and buggies?

Sure, things will be slower, but unless you slip on a pile of fresh horseshit, or are run over by a runaway team, why, no one will be killed by those awful horseless carriages any more!

I lived through 55, and it wasn't bad because everyone did sixty five or seventy anyway, flouting the law, and the cops only enforced the limit on "ticket days." If you were savvy you figured out when they were making their quota, and behaved accordingly.

[babylonsister]

14. Dammit-I agree. This is a whacked thread! nt

[Sinistrous]

9. The 55 mph limit did more to foster contempt for the law than

anything that preceded it. Almost nobody followed it, and the few who did caused major safety problems for the people trying to drive at a safe and reasonable speed as dictated by road conditions.

"Double nickels" was a profoundly stupid idea then and remains so now. Talk of an even lower limit is pure gibberish.

[babylonsister]

17. Think about a city that/who made signs for 65, and then had to 'correct' them...

what a FUBAR that was and is.

[whistle]

12. 55mph in overdrive could save 33% of the fuel consummed when driving at

...or over 70mph

[ProgressiveProfessor]

13. To paraphrase President Obama(!) what works in Wyoming does not work in NYC

It really does not make sense out west where things are really far apart. In California alone there are military bases larger than our smallest states.

It might work in the northeast, but leave the country folks out of that nonsense

[Believing Is Art]

18. Forty?!?!

No way. Save fuel? Doubtful. Save lives and injuries? No way.

Why not?

It would only save fuel if most drivers set their cruise at forty, which will not happen. People don't follow the speed limit as is. They won't follow forty, and unless we increase highway patrol force tenfold, this will never be enforced.

Driving too slow is dangerous. I've heard some reports that it is as dangerous as driving too fast, though I really don't know if this is true. But it is dangerous. It causes road rage, and the slow car is an obstruction to the flow of traffic and those things are dangerous.

If we lower the speed limit, most people will still go 60-75 mph. There will be more slow drivers out there, forcing more people to decelerate and accelerate, wasting fuel. This will also cause more accidents.

This isn't even to mention the impact a 40 mph speed limit would have on business when it takes one and a half to two times as long for anything to get anywhere.

People are going to drive 60-75 mph. We need to figure out how to reduce emissions given this assumed human driving habit.

*Edited for typo

[CRF450]

20. Cars get their best fuel milage when there on the cruise control with no stop and goes.

Even when going 75mph on the highway cars are at their best efficiency. Like you said, 40mph national speed limit is flat out stupid, not to mention it would put some drivers to sleep behind the wheel. My car gets it best between 65 and 75 cause of how tall its geared, literally the engine only turns 1500rpm at 70mph and its aerodynamic. 31mpg from a 5.7 v8 which was all interstate driving! My average is in the low 20's.

Its the stop and goes, braking and accelerating of urban driving that kills fuel milage. I know my car's fuel milage would drop to less than 18mpg if I did enough city driving but, I live way out in the country.

[silverojo]

19. It should be 55 again

Fewer fatalities, less gas consumption. If people would grow up and slow down, the roads would be much more pleasant, safer places. :)

[cabluedem]

22. Yeah that way the police can get back to writing speeding tickets for 58 mph.

its a money making racket that we don't need to revist.

[excess_3]

23. do you live in a nursing home?

people that drive,
did not like 55

[notesdev]

24. Heck

why not go the whole hog and switch over to KPH as well? I mean, if we're going to turn every road into a permanent speed trap, why the heck don't we add some FUD to the equation and swap units?

[newfie11]

25. I live in the rural west out on a farm (Wyoming, Colorado,NE area)

We are 250-350 miles from any large town. We run diesel pickups and I can tell you we get better mileage at 55 than at 70 or 75. At 55 we are getting 25 mpg,(1 ton dodge ram and 1 ton for F350) at 70-75 it drops to 20-21. Cruise control uses more fuel in mountains or hills. I know I have tried it both ways.
These are trucks used on the farm and no a small car will not haul the farm equipment/ trailers etc we use.
Even many of the semis on I-80 out here have slowed down to 65.

[cobalt1999]

27. Using your logic, I could argue that the speed limit should be 25mph

That would save even more lives, save even more injuries, and save even more fuel.

Face it, lowering the speed limit despite all the good arguments is equivalent to prohibition and all of it's good arguments too. There comes a point where the law will collide with what people want to do. In those cases, the people will just break the law and that law is trash-caned.

Prohibition isn't coming back and nor is a 55mph (or 40mph) speed limit.