Speedo watchers

RobAMerc

Are we now in danger of being so afraid of getting caught speeding now that we are spending far too much time staring at the speedo worried we'll get done instead of looking at the roads ?

I also note that a Garda jeep on the M50 a few days ago caused a tail back as people slammed on the brakes in order to make sure they were under the limit. (by about 50k's in most cases ) but it does have an effect on traffice a few miles back.

mikedragon32

That was mentioned somewhere last week (prob. Top Gear) in relation to the proposed system of Average Speed monitoring and it's a fair point.

In relation to passing police vehicles, the paranoia of some drivers never ceases to amaze me. There is absolutely no reason not to pass on on the Motorway if you're not exceeding the limit in doing so. I sometimes wonder if they drive well below the limit for the craic!

Trampas

Another one is speed cameras.

Why do people who are arriving at a speed camera have to slow up to about 10 - 20 kph below the speed limit.

They must think that the speed camera is going to go off less than the speed limit.

blastman

I wonder about that overtaking the cop car as well. I have no qualms about doing it especially on the motorway, although I'll be careful not to exceed the limit (by much, anyway )

unkel

Trampas wrote:

Why do people who are arriving at a speed camera have to slow up to about 10 - 20 kph below the speed limit

To be sure to be sure to be sure :rolleyes:

BrianD3

Re: overtaking the gardai, I already had a rant about this:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054946096

I regularly see a marked car on the mullingar bypass (dual carriageway) escorting an Irish Explosives lorry. Presumably coming from the factory near Enfield. Lorry and Gardai do about 50 mph and always have a big queue of cars backed up behind. I'd say the cops have a good laugh about the idiots who are too paranoid to overtake.

Also, even if someone did commit a road traffic offence how interested are cops who have been assigned to an explosives escort going to be? I'd say you'd need to do something drastic for them to take any notice. Same thing would apply to cops doing a cash escort.

ninty9er

I check my speedo regularly;

left, right, rearview, speedo, road. You'd be surprised how easy it can be to slip over the limit especially on 2 lane roads with 60kph limits.....or dual-carriageways the same (stillorgan is the only place I can think of though)

Driving instructor hammered it into me 2 years ago and it's still with me

Sandwich

Never bother looking at my speedo at all. Think its safer to keep my eyes on the road. Generally helps me to go faster than the rest of the cars on the road too - much cheaper than investing in a high powered car. Just keep your eyes on the road and put your foot down.
Dont need to watch the speedo anyway as my car has some kind of inbuilt limit system that kicks in when the rev neddle touches the red zone which stops me going even faster.

MAYPOP

Sandwich wrote:

Dont need to watch the speedo anyway as my car has some kind of inbuilt limit system that kicks in when the rev neddle touches the red zone which stops me going even faster.

You ever notice that stick on the floor to your left?

Sandwich

MAYPOP wrote:

You ever notice that stick on the floor to your left?

Yes me too. My car cas two but i have them both figured out. One is a handbrake - a quick pull and its usefull for doing fast uturns. The other is the gear lever - usefull for switching between forward and reverse and helps speed up accleration once you master it, but requires coordination with the pedal to the left of the brake one.

Glad to be of help.

MAYPOP

crosstownk

I think the average speed monitoring is more effective way of controlling speeding rather than camera which only cause drivers to reduce speed over a few hundred meters. I saw average speed monitors in Scotland last year and I have to say that every motorist was keeping to the limit. I also noticed that the Gatsos all had refelctive markings on the back of them - making them highly visible - not like the sneaky ones we have here in Ireland!

Supercell

Yep had the pleasure of that before on the M50.

Was in the overtaking lane behind a Merc driver passing by a truck in the driving lane.

The bloody Merc driver slammed on passing the garda in the parked car on one of their observation points after the Cherrywood exit and dived into the driving lane.

I had to slam on as a result too (open road..no rain ..perfect conditions..only hazard is the fecking Merc drivers nuttyness), what a tosser, he wasnt even doing 120km never mind 140km which I reckon is pretty acceptable for an overtake manouver in a 120km zone.

Give the brain dead nature of some drivers on our roads imho these observation points on the M50 are more likely to cause accidents than prevent them.

_Kaiser_

Part of the whole problem though is the whole randomness and unpredictability of enforcement, and lack of common sense in a lot of these cases

One cop might let you away with doing your 140kph in a 120kph zone, another might do you for doing 125 ([cynical] especially if it's the end/start of the month and they've targets to meet! [/cynical]) cause he's having a bad day/on a power trip etc - and don't tell me it doesn't happen, cause I think we all know better!

With this sort of enviornment, is it any wonder that a lot of people (frustrating though it may be) prefer to err on the side of caution.

Now all that said, I've no problem overtaking them (or anyone else) if they're dawdling and it's safe/legal to do so.

Seth Brundle

crosstownk wrote:

I think the average speed monitoring is more effective way of controlling speeding rather than camera which only cause drivers to reduce speed over a few hundred meters. I saw average speed monitors in Scotland last year and I have to say that every motorist was keeping to the limit. I also noticed that the Gatsos all had refelctive markings on the back of them - making them highly visible - not like the sneaky ones we have here in Ireland!

The problem with these is that whilst people try and drive at the speed limit they focus far too much on not exceeding the limit. Too much concentration is taken away from the road. Having driven the stretch of the A1 around Newry several times I have noticed this. However, it is a good road to have it on as there have been several fatalities along here (including a distant relative).

Futureman

It also pisses me off when lick-arses slam on their brakes in front of me, just to let a random Garda car pull out of a junction! WTF do they think is going to happen in return? Brownie Points?

ninty9er

Futureman wrote:

It also pisses me off when lick-arses slam on their brakes in front of me, just to let a random Garda car pull out of a junction! WTF do they think is going to happen in return? Brownie Points?

Happened me today...the 2 cars in front of me obviously had strong braking abilities and most likely ABS....nearly rear ended the second car when the first jammed on what must have been a joint pedal and handbrake effort to let a parked car out:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

My poor tyres

wildswan

Agree. Spend more time watching speedo than the road. Doing 60kph on a motorway just isn't natural WTH is wrong with this country? Btw speed doesn't kill. Just look at Richard Hammond

wildswan

Btw want to congratulate the N.R.A for doing an outstanding job of reducing road fatalities:rolleyes:

Seth Brundle

Whilst they are responsible for developing a safe road network, its not the NRAs job to reduce road fatalities.
www.nra.ie/AboutUs/ResponsibilitiesoftheAuthority

unkel

kbannon wrote:

The problem with these is that whilst people try and drive at the speed limit they focus far too much on not exceeding the limit. Too much concentration is taken away from the road

QFT. If it was commonly known that no one would be "done" for speeding if their speed did not exceed say 20% over the limit, everybody could relax a little bit more

tuxy

unkel wrote:

QFT. If it was commonly known that no one would be "done" for speeding if their speed did not exceed say 20% over the limit, everybody could relax a little bit more

Would people then just watch the speedo to make sure that they do not exceed that 20%?

Wertz

Speaking as a learner driver, I constantly have it on my mind what speed I'm at....it's not like you need to be staring at the speedo permanently, unless you've got ADHD or something...as mentioned above a quick glance to the speedo every time you check your mirrors should be good enough.
I stick to the limit at all times, both for the safety and the legal reasons.
I don't feel it takes unecessary concentration away from the road in front of me (and because, even if it did, I'd be going at the correct speed to enable me to react in time, hopefully)

All that aside, if you have any way half decent throttle control, a glance at your tachometer and knowledge of what gear you're in should be enough. I've found on any car I've driven (all sub 1.4l) that the 2000pm indicator is a good place to be at in 4th or 5th gears as they correspond to 50kmh and 75kmh respectively.
Likewise, 3000rpm in 4th or 5thcorrespond to 80kmh and 100kmh.
I don't think that's a cooincidence.

Semi-off topic; I'm amazed at the amount of people who have a problem with leeping to the 50kmh limit in and around town. Don't they understand that that limit in an urban setting apart from being safer also allows for the freer flow of traffic from junctions? If I have a stream of traffic passing at a junction it's much easier to get out at a small break in the traffic stream if everyone is doing the limit than if they're even 10-15kmh over that limit.

Andrewf20

I like the way the USA police seem to approch this issue, which seems to be that if your speed is inappropriate, they will stop you, but if you are say 8mph ove the limit on an open road with good visibility etc, they dont mind too much.

mkennedy

having picked up a few points i can definitely say the more you pick up the more preoccupied you become with the speedometer
...even when there's no real reason to be worried about your speed e.g on inappropriate 60kph zones on dual carriageways etc where you're desperately trying to stick to the limit as everyone else just breaks it.

_Kaiser_

mkennedy wrote:

having picked up a few points i can definitely say the more you pick up the more preoccupied you become with the speedometer
...even when there's no real reason to be worried about your speed e.g on inappropriate 60kph zones on dual carriageways etc where you're desperately trying to stick to the limit as everyone else just breaks it.

This is what annoys me too.. there you are watching your speed like a hawk and meanwhile other cars, trucks, buses, blast past you in the other lane. Where are the cops then eh?

As Andrewf20 says, a bit of common sense on behalf of the boys n girls in blue would help a lot, but then the stats would drop and remember, with an election a few months away, it's all about being seen to do something.

Traumadoc

Does anyone know how much the speed can be affected as compared to the speed showing on the speedometer by the size of your tyres. Say if you upgrade to 17 inch rims etc. Could you use the defence of honest mistake if you are caught say only a few km over the limit but your speedo says you were under the limit.

Seth Brundle

Traumadoc wrote:

Does anyone know how much the speed can be affected as compared to the speed showing on the speedometer by the size of your tyres. Say if you upgrade to 17 inch rims etc. Could you use the defence of honest mistake if you are caught say only a few km over the limit but your speedo says you were under the limit.

Not a chance - firstly the onus is on you to ensure that your car is roadworthy - this includes making sure that your speedo is accurate. Secondly the onus is on you to make sure that you do not exceed the speed limit. Excuses don't really work!

As for tyre diameter and speed differences, there are plenty of online calculators e.g. http://www.rochfordtyres.co.uk/tyrecalc.asp

afatbollix

my speedos brok:(

unkel

tuxy wrote:

Would people then just watch the speedo to make sure that they do not exceed that 20%?

That's a risk, but I genuinely believe most people wouldn't