M1 Motorworks & stupid speed limit

Jimmy Bottlehead

Is it just me or is the M1 in a ****ing state at the moment? used to be a daft 80 km/h limit from Ballymun exit, now it's dipped to 60km/h due to roadworks. I feel like a complete dick driving at the limit with everyone passing me by, but I'm worried that if I break it I'll get screwed for points or a fine.

Rant over :mad:

Fore Iron

No you're right. Just do what everyone else does. Decide it doesn't apply to you because you know best and risk the fine. Last think you want to do is look like a dick in front of people you don't know and will probably never see again.

Also you risk the creation of an "I can't believe it! Some idiot wasn't breaking the speed lmit on the Motorway today" thread on boards.

Don't mean to be a smart arse, but stupid speed limit or not, I think it's sad that probably the one perosn who tried to do the right thing and stick to it ends up feeling like they're doing something wrong. Peer pressure was supposed to have been left in the classroom for the most part. Do you what you think is best. I got caught speeding a while ago on a stretch of road with a silly low limit. Now I couldn't care how daft I look. 80 quid is better in my pocket at the end of the day. And three years of penalty points doesn't feel that great either.

Jimmy Bottlehead

Fore Iron wrote: »

Also you risk the creation of an "I can't believe it! Some idiot wasn't breaking the speed lmit on the Motorway today" thread on boards.

Funny thing is, every time I end up doing that (or trying to stick to 50km/h on an off ramp) I always think "this'll end up with someone on Boards giving out about the slow tosser in the Polo"

I enjoy getting up to a 100km/h or 120km/h limit, feels nice, but I do feel like a tool when I stick to other limits and get passed out by an entire motorway of people!

**Timbuk2**

Just stick to the speed limits, they're there for a reason. It's not exactly much effort for traffic to overtake you on a motorway.

I was driving on the M1 today at the Roadworks by the Dundalk South exit and the Applegreen Service Stations. Traffic was reduced to one lane at one point, and diverted into the hard shoulder. Coming out of the Services (northbound), I couldn't merge - instead half way down there was a stop sign, and you had to move out at a sharp angle. Hence the lower speed limit, as traffic moving off from a stop takes a while to get up to speed.

Plus a traffic cone could fall over (I saw this on the M9 once), or any other things could happen. There were some maintenance trucks moving slowly in the hard shoulder - there's a lot of hazards when it comes to balancing road works and fast traffic at once. Earlier on the M1 they had traffic moving in opposing directions on the same 'side' of the motorway, separated by traffic cones. Imagine the relative speed between cars if everyone was doing 120km/h - 240 km/h - a collision that would certainly kill.

Besides, 80km/h is still reasonably fast, even if it doesn't seem so on a large road. You'll still get to your destination fine, and sure you might use that bit less fuel :P

Not worth the risk for the penalty points. I saw two speed camera vans today (none on the motorway though, but that's not to say they won't be there at some stage).

Mozoltov!

I've to drive this day in and day out to get to work. I just leave 10 mins earlier and take her cheesy and simply smile at those whizzing by at 80 in the 60 zone and not noticing when it switches back to 120 after the works and see me hammering up behind them and have to move over.

It's a pain but sure it'll pass. So long as the traffic keeps flowing, no complaints from me.

spooky donkey

drove that m1 on friday, and I have to say the road works are a real pain and its diffucult for a person not used to the road to know what lane to get in for exits and such.

Fore Iron

OP, I understand where you're coming from what with feeling like the only eejit doing the speed limit. Put I have learned to take pride in my ability to do my own thing and do what I think is right.

I completely agree that some speed lmits out there are ridiculously slow and/or cover way too long a stretch of road, but I also believe that it is a special combination of arrogance and laziness to ignore them.

Next time you are doing 60 kmh and there is a line of cars tailgating you trying to get you to speed up, realise that you're not a sheep and can actually think for yourself.

There's a thread here at the minute about a 30kmh speed limit in Slane which people are saying is actually so slow as to be dangerous. That's boggles my mind! It's only dangerous because so many people want to ignore it and drive faster because they are too impatient and lazy to stick to it. If it's hilly use your gears and brakes. Don't blame the speed limit for your inability to drive at a constant speed.

Travelling from Slane to Dublin and sticking to the 30kmh limit for 2 km will add just 2 minutes to your joureny compared to doing 80kmh. And will only add 90 seconds compared to the 50kmh limit they are saying it should be. If you can't accept a 90 second delay to your travel time you should never have left the bloody house in the first place!

People don't stick to lmiits because they feel they are entitled to get where they are going without any delay. They forget that using the roads is a privilege not a right.