Whats your limit?

Undercoverguy

This just entered my head yesterday on the way home from Belfast.
I'm sure everyone will agree that we all break the speed limit at one time or another, wather it be by 2kmh or 30kmh..... We've all done it at some stage and we know its wrong!

My current job involves me driving all around the country and i spend everyday in a different county from letterkenny to cork and myself a few other guys i work with have all noticed the same thing.
People seem to have there own personal speeds limits rather than obeying the legal ones. This is largely what i've noticed and i'm sure most you guys have too.....

Motorway Offical Speed Limit: 120kmh
Drivers Average Speed: 140kmh

National Road Offical Speed Limit: 100kmh
Driver Adverage Speed: 120kmh

Regional Road Official Limit: 80kmh
Driver Adverage Speed: 100kmh

Now even i have done the motorway one but would try at all costs breaking any speed limit below 100kmh, and before you guys pull me apart.... -

- I never have (and never will) break the speed limit in any kind of pedestrian area such as city centre or housing estates, schools etc.

- I have never traveled any faster on a motorway than 140kmh or overtaken at speed.

- I have never involved in an accident, I dont hold any points, I generally dont speed with the exception of the odd motorway (as above) and finally i would think myself to be myself a very safe driver. (No doubt someone will still give out to me on this)

On a motorway such as the M1 or similar i have never driven any faster than 140kmh, Even at times when i've been in a total emergency of a rush i would never dare travel over 140kmh. I drive a 2007 VW Jetta while working outside Dublin (A company car) and i would think it has a fairly high top speed and safety rating but still wouldnt push it any further... yet i still see people pass me at 150-160kmh in Polos and Puntos.

So my question guys is this, Do you travel above the speed limit? If so how much? Or do you believe or limits are too high as it is?

Marcus.Aurelius

I'm one of the 20 kph over the limit guys. But never over 50 kph in residential areas. Only in open road situations with good hard shoulders to cover entrances and exits. On the job its usually the same, but can be around 40 kph over or more, depending on what calls we're on.

is_that_so

I find the speed limits mostly appropriate and I tend to be in and around the speed limit except 60kph, which I find a daft speed in general, but I stick to 50 kph where marked. In a hurry on a motorway might do 130 kph max, but usually in and around 110-115 kph.

bazz26

I ususally will not go over 10kph above the speed limit depending on the conditions.

HashSlinging

generally 10kph above the speed limit but depending on the conditions... tend to have the odd short burst.

peepsbates

same as bazz

Vegeta

My speedo has miles on it (the kms are tiny and distracting to read) but I generally do 65mph in the 100kph zones and obey all the others

bar the road works ones of 20kph on straight perfect roads with 2 cones in the hard shoulder or other stupid situations like that

hi5

My limit is usually determined by the person in front,otherwise I'm on the set limit or 5-10 km/P/H above if I'm in a hurry.
My experience is most people drive below the limit by about 5-10 km/p/h in 100 zones and 5-10 km/p/h above in 50 zones.
I suspect many people are oblivious to speed limit signs.

dudara

I drive no more than 5 kph above the speed limit. It's just not worth it. Perhaps cause I'm a physicist, but the thought of what can happen in crashes scares the sh*te out of me. I will drive below the limit if conditions or the road are poor.

Gran Hermano

Where is the option for 'depends on the weather and traffic conditions'?

Caliden

If it's an open and straight road I'll go 20km/h over the limit. There are some roads in my area that have retained their old speed limits from back when they were dangerous and winding roads but these days they are so straight and wide the limits don't make since seeing as the tertiary roads comign off them are narrower and have higher speed limits.

junkyard

I generally drive as I need to, if I'm in a hurry I speed if I'm not I don't, simple as. That said I do make allowances for built up areas. As I always say speed isn't the problem it's badly designed and maintained roads and bad driving by inexperienced drivers are the main problem.

Dr. Seuss

I'm still on MPH. Drove up the M1 today to Drogheda, mostly between 90mph - 120mph. Good buzz! Flew past everyone!

rebel.ranter

junkyard wrote:

As I always say speed isn't the problem it's badly designed and maintained roads and bad driving by inexperienced drivers are the main problem.

Sorry Junkyard I would have to partly disagree with you there. I agree that inexperienced drivers being let loose is a problem. Equally bad is experienced drivers not taking into account the bad design or maintenance when they drive down these routes. If they are badly designed drivers shoud drive with caution.

I am a 10kmph over the limit man for the 100kmph National routes & 120kmph Motorway limits. No points so far. Obey urban speed limits fairly rigidly though.

I am in the process of renewing advanced driving qualifications for all my team at work. We do courses every 2 years in advanced driving and off-road driving. The instructor states that most accidents occur on a clear day & on a straight stretch of road. I think these type of courses should be mandatory for all drivers, maybe every 5 years though.
We used NiFast the last time but this time I'm going to use a different crowd so I can benefit on my own insurance policy!!!

zilog_jones

The only time I've ever consciously speeded was when overtaking a couple of times on the N7 (dual carriageway part), and occasionally on the Clonmaken Road (between the Coonagh Roundabout and the new bridge in Limerick) - it's 60km/h all the way but no one else ever seems to go the limit so sometimes I gave in to peer pressure (though never during the day when people might be crossing or near the park).

There's some bogger roads in Clare I've been on that I wouldn't dare go the 80 speed limit, never mind anything higher! 120km/h is painfully noisy in my crappy 1.3 pushrod Fiesta - I dread to think what prolonged driving at any higher speeds would do to me. I'm pretty sure I temporarily got something like this from that trip to Dublin too

Stark

zilog_jones wrote:

120km/h is painfully noisy in my crappy 1.3 pushrod Fiesta - I dread to think what prolonged driving at any higher speeds would do to me. I'm pretty sure I temporarily got something like this from that trip to Dublin too

I've a Fiesta with that engine and it hums along nicely at 120km/hr. (It would be uncomfortable to drive at more than 130km/hr though). You probably need to get the tappets on your engine adjusted, mine was quite noisy before I had mine done.

Vikings

I usually take note of the posted speed limit and if it is appropriate then I will follow it however a lot of the time this is not the case. I drive at a speed that I am comfortable with and that I know I can handle, no more and no less.

I do not feel comfortable hitting 100km/h on windy country roads with an 80 limit, a lot of the time I wont even feel comfortable at the posted 80 limit so I drive below the limit.

That being said, National roads and Motorways can be different. Depending on conditions I will either stick to the limit or I can find myself soaring above the limit by anywhere from 10km-40km/h over... heading up to Belfast recently I must have travelled the majority of the way there at least 20km/h over the limit on the motorway, why? Because it was safe to do so, all conditions permitted as there was good weather and little to no traffic. Not to mention a zero Garda presence.

I don't think you need to put that many options in the poll, either you speed or you don't. Actually let me rephrase that, "Either you admit to speeding or you do not."

unkel

I do always overtake as quick as I can, so that would comprise speeding just for a few moments. I presume the OP is more interested in driving above the speed limit on an ongoing basis

Big difference in my book between motorways and non-motorways. In general, I don't tend to speed much really. I admit I do not stick to the indicated speed on my speedo. I'll go by GPS calibrated speed plus a small margin. I.e. 124km/h indicated on my speedo might be 120km/h real speed. Just guessing now but 130km/h indicated is unlikely to trigger a speed camera to take me photo

Sometimes (empty motorways only) I'll let rip a bit :eek:

stovelid

zilog_jones wrote:

There's some bogger roads in Clare I've been on that I wouldn't dare go the 80 speed limit, never mind anything higher! (

Learned to drive in Clare. I know exactly what you mean...

I find the 120kph and 100kph speed limits fine for me in general. My gripe is 60kph zones that should be a 80kph. Only time I really speed is by 5-10 kph and it's temporary..For example, when overtaking or on the motorway when it's very quiet and you don't realize that you've crept up over 120kph.

Also will drive under the limit if it's foggy, very poor visibility or a really poor road.

mik_da_man

It really depends on the road.
On motorways (apart from M50:rolleyes: ) I do up to 140
On good National roads I'll go around 110
And on good 80km roads I'll go 100
I don't really agree with some of the roads being dropped from 100 to 80 K anyway. Tis fine on small back roads but not nice big ones.

All speedo indicated speeds - Actual speed may be different (lower) and generally is according to my GPS

Mik

seamus

Most of my driving would be urban, and my experience would be at odd with the OP's. In Dublin at least, I would say:

Speed Limit: 50km/h
Average Driver speed: 60km/h

Speed Limit: 60km/h
Average Driver speed: 70km/h

Speed Limit: 80km/h
Average Driver speed: 80km/h

Speed Limit: 100km/h
Average Driver speed: 90km/h

Speed Limit: 120km/h
Average Driver speed: 100km/h

That is, as a whole I would say that most people are happiest driving somewhere between 60 and 100 km/h. If you spend a lot of time on M and N roads outside of Dublin though, I'm sure that you may see the average speeds increase.

Personally, I would say that I generally drive around the speed limit, except where it seems excessively low and I know the road well (50km/h on four-lane N roads, for e.g.). That's more a habit than a conscious decision though.

C_Breeze

Ah yes , my old V6 beauty

MercMad

If you asked me thgis 10 years ago I would tell you that I never obeyed speed limits anywhere, except in residential areas !

I was lucky I didn't kill someone or crash or injure myself !

Anyway, nowdays I actually do obey the limit and I either set my cruise control for the exact limit, weather permitting, or just under it. If I am under presssure timewise, which may happen once or twice a year (I learned not to make time up on the road) I may go 5km/h over it.

The biggest problem is around these areas where there are roadworks and temporary speed limits. I just find it so hard to stick to the limit in most of these places, and I tend to tuck in behind someone, at a safe distance.

When I drive my old car, I cruise anyway, never near the limit on any road !

I have noticed, and please dont take this the wrong way, a lot of coloured women driving old sh1tboxes in the overtaking lane at ridiculously low speeds, like 40km/h on the M1 !! Folk were blasting their horns, going past on the inside, and these folk are ALL oblivious to it !!

WTFITAA ???

Alun

Seamus wrote:

Speed Limit: 120km/h
Average Driver speed: 100km/h

Yeah, that's the odd one alright .. there's lots of talk of speeding but I've never experienced the huge numbers of people content to potter along at 90-100km/h on motorways anywhere except Ireland. Try that on a UK motorway and you'll become the filling in an HGV sandwich.

zilog_jones

Stark wrote:

I've a Fiesta with that engine and it hums along nicely at 120km/hr. (It would be uncomfortable to drive at more than 130km/hr though). You probably need to get the tappets on your engine adjusted, mine was quite noisy before I had mine done.

I think it was more a combination of my crappy Chinese tyres and other stuff making noise, not just the engine. I think my wheels need balancing as well...

gurramok

Alun wrote:

Yeah, that's the odd one alright .. there's lots of talk of speeding but I've never experienced the huge numbers of people content to potter along at 90-100km/h on motorways anywhere except Ireland. Try that on a UK motorway and you'll become the filling in an HGV sandwich.

Hehe, i'm one of those like Seamus.

I just couldn't be bothered most of the time hitting 120 especially on M50/M1/N4(after peak of course), a part of me says fuel saving and another part says just to be a tad safer.
Hence i'm one of those guys stuck on 100 with cars zooming by me unless i'm in a real hurry and hit the 120
When i was younger in my 20's, i would of been about 10 over the limit on motorways.
If it was a national road, i always leave room in a safe situation to be overtaken and don't hog the road like some do!

McSpud

I would generally be quiet careful in urban & residential areas. On the main roads & motorways would cruise at 70mph or 80-85mph subject obviously to traffic, weather conditions & road conditions. Any speed above that means spend too much time looking out for garda traps.

Wertz

M: Above limit by 10-15kph on average and it's not usually intentionally. I won't usually sustain it unless traffic conditions dictate that it'd be better.

N: I do my utmost to get it to the indicated limit and stick as rigidly as I can to it, obviously slowing down for corners. IMO many of our N roads are a lot more dangerous to break the limit on than any of our M-ways, especialy since it's 2 way single lane traffic.

Urban areas: I'll do the 50kph if possible but much less than that where it's necessary. I do not break that limit under any circumstances.



All the above aside, and as many on here have mentioned, the consistency of limits with regards to road type, amount of bends, state of repair etc is fundamentally flawed....for instance where you have inner ring/relief/bypass roads in urban areas, with wide lanes and no shops/houses built adjacent, then 50kph is a bit of a joke and tends to be ignored by most drivers....60 would be marginally better.

Also, I took a spin down the new stretch of the M1 today (from Dundalk to the border) and the temp limits in place on a dual carriageway were 60! Okay fair enough when it turned into a contraflow then 60 was ballpark but for the open 2 lane then it's downright silly....some people were doing the limit, others (mostly NI reg I must add) were doing their usual 70mph.
I was tending to keep somewhere between 60 and 80kph, but I'd hate to have picked up points for a stupid temp limit like that one...

Kojak

McSpud wrote:

I would generally be quiet careful in urban & residential areas. On the main roads & motorways would cruise at 70mph or 80-85mph subject obviously to traffic, weather conditions & road conditions. Any speed above that means spend too much time looking out for garda traps.

I would be of the same thinking myself. Also, up until recently the car I was driving would start to feel like it was falling apart if it went above 70 mph so obvioulsy I wouldnt have being going faster than that.

In urban areas (i.e. towns, villages) I would adhere to the speed limit as there would be a higher chance of the gardaí lurking around with the speed gun.