I feel like I'm the only one who obeys 30km/h speed limits.

The_Nipper_One

I'm posting this after being harassed by a lorry driver who obviously didn't like the fact that I was driving at the speed limit. He was no more than a couple of foot from my bumper, and revving his engine.

However, he's just the most extreme example of something which I think is the most common practice of the drivers where I live. Nobody, and I mean nobody, seems to drive at 30 in the 30 zones, and if you do drive at 30 you only have to wait a second or 2 before a car closes up behind you doing 50 - 60.

Do you stick to 30 in 30 zones?

What's your opinion of them?

Fiery mutant

A 30 kph speed limit is a danger. They might as well just build huge horizontal escalators like at the airport, get us to park on them, and we can roll across town.

There is no logical reason to have to travel anywhere at 30 kph, unless yr coming out of your driveway.

Red Crow

Nope. You might as well walk if you do 30 kmph.

I do stick to most speed limits and I'd never operate the car where I wasn't in a position to control it. I don't do stupid things.

*awaits onslaught*

The_Nipper_One

Fiery mutant wrote: »

A 30 kph speed limit is a danger.

Why? Because other cars are not doing 30 in the 30 zone?

There is no logical reason to have to travel anywhere at 30 kph, unless yr coming out of your driveway.

There are narrow roads where I live with cars parked on both side of the street. 30 can be a very nice speed when you have a lot of pedestrians all over the place with cars, vans, etc all being potential places one could step out from.

Red Crow

What speed do you go in the 'fast lane'?

*ducks*

BMJD

Eli Manning wrote: »

What speed do you go in the 'fast lane'?

*ducks*

I do whatever speed I like, that's what I pay road tax for!!!

Fiery mutant

BMJD wrote: »

I do whatever speed I like, that's what I pay road tax for!!!

No such thing as road tax.

The_Nipper_One

3 for yes and 7 for no already.

Now I see why people hate the gosafe vans so much.

BMJD

Fiery mutant wrote: »

No such thing as road tax.

ThunderZtorm

Depends on the zone, I'd say. Most zones I stick with the official speed limit since, well, usually it's there for a reason.

There is one spot on the N3 where it tells you to go 30 and literally NOBODY does - it's near Blanchardstown/Castleknock, just after the roundabout where you get on the M50. I've never seen anyone slow down to 30 there. At one point I did slow down to 60 with a garda bike behind me, but he was waving me away because I was too slow (?!)

djimi

I cant speak for anyone else but to me its more dangerous to drive through town constantly having to look at your speedo to ensure that you are under a needlessly low limit, than it is to drive at a speed which you deem to be safe for the conditions and surroundings, while being able to keep your full attention on the road where it is needed.

ironclaw

Eli Manning wrote: »

I do stick to most speed limits and I'd never operate the car where I wasn't in a position to control it. I don't do stupid things.

You can't control a car at 30km/h? But can at 50km/h? That doesn't make sense

I always stick to 30km/h as the only sections I'm aware of or drive regularly are the Quay's area in Dublin. For no other reason than the speed van and boys in Blue lives on them. They arn't that long and frankly I couldn't care how impatient the lorry / taxi is behind me. Their arrogance ain't worth €80 and 2 points to me. In addition, nearly all those sections are two lanes. If your aggrieved, just overtake.

_Kaiser_

djimi wrote: »

I cant speak for anyone else but to me its more dangerous to drive through town constantly having to look at your speedo to ensure that you are under a needlessly low limit, than it is to drive at a speed which you deem to be safe for the conditions and surroundings, while being able to keep your full attention on the road where it is needed.

+1,000,000

Personally I take the same approach when driving generally and don't be overly concerned about the arbitrary (often nonsensical) limits on signposts.

Doesn't mean I tear around the place at 160 km/h either, but if it's busy/foggy/bad visibility/lots of pedestrians about I'll slow down regardless of what the signs may say I can legally do, and if it's quiet, dry and I'm on the open motorway with nothing around as far as you can see (as is the case on part of the M3/M7/M8 for example) then I'll drive appropriate to those conditions too.

0 points btw

corktina

Stick exactly to 30? no I don't.

Recognise that these are areas with high Pedestrian usage and therefore the limit is about protecting them? Yes I do.

It's about time the car/pedestrian thing was shifted more in favour of the pedestrian

the_syco

I dislike the 30 limit, as I have to spend more time than usual looking at the speedometer to ensure I'm not over 30, or below 20.

If someone does decide to tailgate me on the 30km/h section, I sometimes play the "how slow can I go without the car cutting out" game... :pac:

the_syco

corktina wrote: »

It's about time the car/pedestrian thing was shifted more in favour of the pedestrian

On this point; as I'm moving so slowly at 30km/h, I've had more people walk out in front of me at an unsafe/stupid distance. Unfortunately, if everyone is looking at the speedometer more, it's only a matter of time before a person is hit.

irritablebaz

i drive at a sensible speed depending on the area i am in. i despise morons speeding through built up areas showing off their wanky new exhaust system or whatever it is they have added to their monstrosity of a motor they think looks cool.

ranting apart it is also quite dangerous to drive too slowly and i think elderly drivers especially need regular testing to retain their licences.

djimi

corktina wrote: »

It's about time the car/pedestrian thing was shifted more in favour of the pedestrian

Agreed. If a pedestrian cant deal with their own safety in a 50km/h zone through a town/city then it says more about the pedestrian than it does about the driver. Im all for safety obviously, but its about time that the RSA started to put more of an onus on pedestrians/cyclists/motorcyclists to take more care for their own safety rather than always trying to bang home that the car driver is the one responsible all the time.

ironclaw

the_syco wrote: »

On this point; as I'm moving so slowly at 30km/h, I've had more people walk out in front of me at an unsafe/stupid distance. Unfortunately, if everyone is looking at the speedometer more, it's only a matter of time before a person is hit.

So should we drive at 50km/h and increase the chance of a potential pedestrian death? A hit at 30km/h is far less likely to kill you than at 50km/h.

I'm amazed people use the 'looking at my speedometer' excuse. Its not that hard to maintain speed in an area that is generally slow moving such as the Quays.

As I've said on numerous threads, I'm all for safe and responsible speed. But when a limit is there, just stick to it. Your talking seconds out of your day versus points & a fine.

corktina

ironclaw wrote: »

So should we drive at 50km/h and increase the chance of a potential pedestrian death? A hit at 30km/h is far less likely to kill you than at 50km/h.

I'm amazed people use the 'looking at my speedometer' excuse. Its not that hard to maintain speed in an area that is generally slow moving such as the Quays.

As I've said on numerous threads, I'm all for safe and responsible speed. But when a limit is there, just stick to it. Your talking seconds out of your day versus points & a fine.

quite right.

You should not be spending seconds looking at your speedo >This you use your periphery vision for as you do with your mirrors. You almost subconsciously KNOW whats behind you and what speed you are at...at least that's what I do

_Kaiser_

ironclaw wrote: »

I'm amazed people use the 'looking at my speedometer' excuse. Its not that hard to maintain speed in an area that is generally slow moving such as the Quays.

But the "problem" isn't when the traffic is slow moving or at a standstill. It's when it's not and it's unnaturally slow to be doing 30 km/h on that stretch of road - plus as noted above it encourages pedestrians to take stupid risks they wouldn't otherwise take.

I drive between 30-55 I'd say on the sections in question - but that again is dependent on a variety of factors (traffic volume, pedestrian volume, buses trying to cut in and out across lanes, bikes/motorbikes weaving between traffic etc).

As a general rule I don't overly concern myself with what it says on the speedo and drive to the (varying) conditions and awareness of the immediate environment, which is a far better approach IMO

djimi

ironclaw wrote: »

So should we drive at 50km/h and increase the chance of a potential pedestrian death? A hit at 30km/h is far less likely to kill you than at 50km/h.

Why not drive at 20km/h? Or 10km/h? 50km/h is sufficiently slow to ensure pedestrian safety without hindering the progress of the driver. Anything slower than that is unnecessary imo.

ironclaw wrote: »

I'm amazed people use the 'looking at my speedometer' excuse. Its not that hard to maintain speed in an area that is generally slow moving such as the Quays.

Its obviously not an issue in slow moving traffic, but there are times of the day when the traffic is not heavy in these zones. Its my opinion that it requires more effort to drive at 30km/h than it does the other speed limits, as it is an uncommon limit that we are not accustomed to driving at. I cant speak for anyone else, but I find it a lot harder to stick to 30km/h than I do 50km/h or above.

kippy

djimi wrote: »

I cant speak for anyone else but to me its more dangerous to drive through town constantly having to look at your speedo to ensure that you are under a needlessly low limit, than it is to drive at a speed which you deem to be safe for the conditions and surroundings, while being able to keep your full attention on the road where it is needed.

I think the big issue with that logic, as sound as it is in the heads of many, is that there are those who have absolutely no comprehension of what speed is safe for conditions, surroundings and all the other variables that have to be accounted for.
As such everyone has to suffer the consequences as with a lot of things in this country, specifically, the actions of the minority determine the limits set on the majority.

ScumLord

There are 30kph speed limits now? I'll have to slow down and have a look at one or two of these signs some time.

Tallon

I don't care what the signs say, if you do 30km here, you're an asshole!


Link

djimi

kippy wrote: »

I think the big issue with that logic, as sound as it is in the heads of many, is that there are those who have absolutely no comprehension of what speed is safe for conditions, surroundings and all the other variables that have to be accounted for.
As such everyone has to suffer the consequences as with a lot of things in this country, specifically, the actions of the minority determine the limits set on the majority.

The thing is though that there would be a safe limit of 50km/h in place regardless, so its just up to the driver to determine whether or not extra caution needs to be taken. The same could be said of any limit on any road; there are times when its not safe to do 120 on a motorway, but there is no call to lower to limit to account for the worst case scenario there.

Its my opinion that 50km/h on a road like the quays is perfectly safe. If pedestrians cannot be trusted to be safe at those speeds then its the pedestrian that needs looking at, not the driver.

No Pants

The_Nipper_One wrote: »

He was no more than a couple of foot from my bumper, and revving his engine.

Sounds more like he was changing down.

Atomic Pineapple

kippy wrote: »

I think the big issue with that logic, as sound as it is in the heads of many, is that there are those who have absolutely no comprehension of what speed is safe for conditions, surroundings and all the other variables that have to be accounted for.
As such everyone has to suffer the consequences as with a lot of things in this country, specifically, the actions of the minority determine the limits set on the majority.

Which is why we should be tackling that with better education and re-education, everyone should be given properly designed lessons on how to drive not just how to pass a test and everyone should be re-tested at a minimum every 10 years when renewing their licence but realistically it should be every 5 years, this is how to get people to drive safely, not by enforcing increasingly ridiculous speed limits.

derry

For me speed signs are recommendation and only can be 100% must be complied with for the commercial traffic who must obey statues laws .
In Germany they take attitude they don't look the speed of private cars on the motor ways system .The recommended speed limit is 130KPH and so if you exceed the recommended speed limit and don't have accident you wont get into trouble . So in theory there is speed limit but in realty there isn't . However if you are doing say 200KPH on German motor way and crash and kill injure damage property and they can establish that you were exceeding the recommended speed limit then the SHTF.The German car insurance will often not pay up for the damage and the results are bad jail etc .So in theory in Germany you exceed the recommended speed limit at your own risk .However for commercial traffic they must follow the speed limits on motor ways or they get fined big time ask any truck driver in Germany they get fined often
Cars hitting pedestrians at speeds higher than 50KPH (~30MPH )will often be very bad to killing them. At speeds below 50 KPH (~30 MPH) the average pedestrian will survive the impact with some injuries . Its the big trucks they run over you even at 1 mph they will squash you flat .So 30KPH (~20MPH) for me is for the trucks or when I see the camera vans 40 KPH or slow coach is front of me so (~25 MPH) is probably what speed i really do if I judge the conditions allow me to drive at 25MPH safely and so far havent hit any pedestrians not that they don't try hard enough to get run over in Dublin


Derry

kippy

Atomic Pineapple wrote: »

Which is why we should be tackling that with better education and re-education, everyone should be given properly designed lessons on how to drive not just how to pass a test and everyone should be re-tested at a minimum every 10 years when renewing their licence but realistically it should be every 5 years, this is how to get people to drive safely, not by enforcing increasingly ridiculous speed limits.

I don't disagree with any of this or the previous comments in reponse to my own.
Was just trying to paint a picture of why there are limits set in the first place.

Pj!

Just drive intelligently. Go with the general flow.

In a lot of countries the cops would tell you to hurry on and stop being an obstruction. It even happens here on occasion.

Anan1

Pj! wrote: »

Just drive intelligently. Go with the general flow.

Which?

kippy

Pj! wrote: »

Just drive intelligently. Go with the general flow.

In a lot of countries the cops would tell you to hurry on and stop being an obstruction. It even happens here on occasion.

As above, the problem is the "intelligently" part.
There are many out there who suffer from serious deficiencies in intelligence.

Cienciano

I go along the south quays every day and never saw a speed van/speed camera. Are they there often?

Tallon wrote: »

I don't care what the signs say, if you do 30km here, you're an asshole!


Link

That's a challenge. I tried it a few times and it's amazingly difficult. Feels like you're stopped! Couldn't do it, had to speed up.
I managed keeping to the 60kph speed limit up the M1 where there's roadworks, that was hard too.

dgt

In the city centre yes.
In Slane some of the time
On that stretch of road Tal linked? Not a hope. What genius thought that was a great idea? Did they ever think you may need a bit of speed to get up that in frosty weather? What a twat of a limit :rolleyes:

TheChizler

derry wrote: »

For me speed signs are recommendation and only can be 100% must be complied with for the commercial traffic who must obey statues laws .

You might find that your 'reality' and reality are a bit different! Picking laws to follow doesn't work!

Tallon

Cienciano wrote: »

I go along the south quays every day and never saw a speed van/speed camera. Are they there often?

Yes, loads! I've seen them tucked in behind the trucks at Guinness Storehouse quite often

Cienciano wrote: »

That's a challenge. I tried it a few times and it's amazingly difficult. Feels like you're stopped! Couldn't do it, had to speed up.
I managed keeping to the 60kph speed limit up the M1 where there's roadworks, that was hard too.

I tried it one night, about 2am with no traffic.... I felt like the car was going to blow up it was going that slow... I'd actually go so far as to say it's a danger to go that speed entering a Motorway

markpb

Tallon wrote: »

I don't care what the signs say, if you do 30km here, you're an asshole!

AFAIK all the M50 freeflow junctions with tight loops were (later) given 30km limits because of this fatal crash.

Pj!

kippy wrote: »

As above, the problem is the "intelligently" part.
There are many out there who suffer from serious deficiencies in intelligence.

Fair point. Some will drive too slow and some will drive too fast.


Speed limits need to be more intelligent/relevant (in places).

Tallon

markpb wrote: »

AFAIK all the M50 freeflow junctions with tight loops were (later) given 30km limits because of this fatal crash.

I heard (and I don't know how much truth there is in this) that the slip roads were dug and built by machines from France, thus, they camber the wrong way leading to the probability of causing these crashes?

The_Nipper_One

No Pants wrote: »

Sounds more like he was changing down.

Nah, definitely not.

He put the lorry in a low gear, came so close that I could only see the front grill, and began pumping the accelerator every second or so making the cab lift a bit.

It was bad enough that if I would have been able to see the company he works for I would have been on the phone this afternoon making a complaint with his number plate at hand, and I never thought I would contemplate doing something like that.

For the most part I don't really care if people want to do over 30, but there was no excuses for what that driver did.