DC beltway crash

[Village Idiot]

What was the posted speed limits for those cases and what was the speed they were actually driving?

That's all well and good for people who drive recklessly like not using a turn signal, serve around, drive way over the posted speed limit, or any other number or reckless things in their car. Nobody will ever have to pay a ticket for driving safely at the speed limit. That information does nothing to prove your point. It would only prove that speeding drivers would be liable for an accident because driving over the speed limit is consider reckless driving, not following the speed limit

You claim cops have given tickets, but have the drivers ever actually paid. If they didn't contest it, they are pretty pathetic and stupid for doing so. No judge would ever make someone pay under those conditions. It would completely undermine all traffic laws, setting a president allowing people to drive whatever speed they want and get away with it. If I cop ever gave me a ticket under those conditions I would literally laugh in his face and tell him I look forward to humiliating him in court.

Speed limits are bogus any ways. From VA to WV to MD which is less than 30 miles on I-81 the speed limit, starting in VA, goes 65, in WV, 70, in MD, 65 then 60 and another 15 miles later back to 65 in PA. This is all about 30-45 miles. Why isn't it just one speed limit? Does it mean if I cross from the 70mph speed limit in WV to the 65 in MD while still doing 70, that I am being reckless since I'm going over the limit? And the stretch from VA to PA have only one or two spots where traffic becomes a concern, but there's such a wide variety in speeds, some that change every 5 miles.

I believe roads, when they are constructed, have a certain high speed which they are rated at. It doesn't mean that it's the speed limit though.

Remember when the nation's speed limit was like 55mph and when it was lifted, some states went to 70mph 75mph or no speed limit at all? Does that mean that all of a sudden, every driver in the US was instantly a better and more qualified drivers? Does it mean that the roads were automatically safer to drive on because some one raised the speed limit?

No.

If the speed limit on US highways was abolished, the governments would loose soooooo much money from tickets and stuff. It's just a way for them to make money. People that drive 90mph in a 70mph zone aren't necessarily bad drivers and certainly aren't wreckless. The people doing the speed limit could be talking on the cell phone, reading the paper, changing their clothes, eating their breakfast, doing their makeup, or any number of things that make them 10x more lethal than a person who is driving over the posted limit.

It's not speed that kills, it's the drivers that don't pay attention and are easily distracted that kill. How many times have you had some one that pulls out infront of you, runs lights, or tries to merge into your lane almost cause a wreck? I'm sure it's many more times than you have some one almost cause a wreck for going faster than you.

edit: Page 5 pnw3d

 

[fleurya]

People that drive 90mph in a 70mph zone aren't necessarily bad drivers and certainly aren't wreckless.

It doesn't matter if people think speed limits are bogus or not, what I was getting at in that reply is that in the event of an accident where the cause is speed difference and all other things being equal, the guy speeding is going to be held liable and the guy in the speed limit isn't. And if someone is ever ticketed just for going the speed limit, there's no way it will hold up in court.

It's a very bold statement to say people driving in that range "certainly aren't reckless". Like anything else, it's a mixed bag. You'll get people who do all those dangerous things at higher speeds too. What I'm trying to say is, in the event of an accident, the amount of damage increases with the speed. That's a matter of fact. Just because people are driving faster and "think" they are better drivers doesn't make it so.

Try that line of reasoning while driving out in the midwest during the fall when deer love to run out in the road. I bet if a deer jumps in front of us at the same distance with me going 60 and you going 90, my chances are much better at either getting out of the way safely (simple physics of quickly moving a 3000 lb object at different speeds) or not being injured on impact (higher speed causes more force of impact). And, yes, an adult deer can destroy a car.

There's enough statistical data out there for insurance companies to pay attention to speed limits and charge appropriately. You'll definitely pay a higher premium if the speed limit is higher in your state. And that's based on real facts, they don't just pull that information out of nowhere. You'll also pay more if a state doesn't have a helmet law. If a guy isn't smart enough to put a brain-bucket on and gets in an accident, his head injuries cost insurance companies more money, so they charge everyone more to compensate.

Just because a law changes doesn't make it bogus either. It just means better information was found to justify a change, or people wanted lower insurance premiums. Speed limits vary because information or findings may vary. It doesn't mean it's based on nothing. Cigarettes didn't always have warning labels. Now they do. Does that mean the warning is bogus? No, it means research found new information to warrant the warning.

I'm done with this thread. All the NASCAR/F1 wannabes, "that won't happen to me" types, and those who think they're driving abilities are for no justifiable reason better than everyone around them, please stay out of Indiana. And just because you don't agree with a law doesn't make you above it.

 

[Kar98]

It's a very bold statement to say people driving in that range "certainly aren't reckless".

Nobody said that, I think. But simply saying somebody is driving recklessly without looking at the factors other than speed, is quite bold

Just because a law changes doesn't make it bogus either. It just means better information was found

Just means some lobbying group or other was making enough noise to get the law changed.

I'm done with this thread. All the NASCAR/F1 wannabes, "that won't happen to me" types, and those who think they're driving abilities are for no justifiable reason better than everyone around them,

I gave a justifiable reason why I am a better driver
Weeks of proper driving training, by an actual instructor, under "interesting" conditions, rather than puttering around the Walmart parking lot for an afternoon. And 20 years of practice on the streets of multiple continents.

 

[scooter]

gee, thanks for the negative rep! didn't know my remarks were "silly" ;P just makes me want to go pull up more facts!

Effects of Raising and Lowering Speed Limits

Do Speed Limits Matter?


Higher Speed Limits, Lower Death Rates: Statistics surprise many observers of state's highways


PDF Speed Doesn't Kill: The Repeal of the 55-MPH Speed Limit

FATAL ACCIDENTS DOUBLE ON MONTANA’S INTERSTATES

The doubling of fatal accidents occurred after Montana implemented its new safety program; complete with federal funding, artificially low speed limits and full enforcement.

 

[fleurya]

Wasn't me. I only give neg rep when people get personal, not for posting their opinions. I just remember an old saying I heard once. "Opinions are like _______, everyone's got one and they usually stink." So there's no need to sweat it too much.

 

[Village Idiot]

Police changed their story a bit:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/01/AR2007060102333.html?nav=hcmodule

 

[scooter]

Police changed their story a bit:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/01/AR2007060102333.html?nav=hcmodule

thanks for the update!

 

[Brown Study]

Thanks for keeping an eye out for that update, Village Idiot.

(And proof the phantom biker doesn't exist only in the cop's imagination would help.)

On Wednesday night, county police said an officer pursued a speeding motorcyclist onto the Beltway. The motorcyclist cut in front of a car, and the cruiser slammed into a vehicle, sending it airborne over the median's guardrail and into oncoming traffic.

But Thursday and yesterday, police said they could not confirm a police chase. "We're not even calling it a pursuit," said Lt. April Delabrer of the public information office.

 

[Village Idiot]

i talked to pg county officer yesterday, the chase was not authorized , the officer that chased never turned on his lights ,the officer never called the chase in. his dash camera was not on. and the data box in the car said he was doing 124MPH at point of impact, when he hit the truck. the camera can be turned on in 3 different ways a officer can activate the dash cam by a button on there belt ,a button in the car, or by turning on there sirens , the officer did none of these things , but the camera will automatically come on in a impact and records the last secs. the officer will lose his job and is probably going to face manslaughter charges.

me again. read above. kthxbai

 

[fleurya]

I'll wait for that information to come from a reliable source. Until then, it's just like a Mac rumor.

 

[Brown Study]

From a Washington Post reporter's so-called blog:

The news reports keep referring to the motorcycle involved in this week's Beltway crash as a "bullet bike." Can you enlighten me on what this looks like? Why the name? I want to be sure to recognize them and stay out of the way.

John Kelly: Perhaps another chatter can elucidate but I think of them as the low-slung Kawasakis that look vaguely insectoid. They don't look tremendously different from a typical motorcycle, except they're not the Harleys that lardbutt older riders prefer. People also call them "crotch rockets." They're capable of incredible acceleration, like 0-60 in 3 seconds or something.

Nickles to doughnuts, the guy who asked drives a Rambler.

And Kelly's answer does him and his newspaper no good.

 

[Village Idiot]

From a Washington Post reporter's so-called blog:Nickles to doughnuts, the guy who asked drives a Rambler.

And Kelly's answer does him and his newspaper no good.

Hah. That's great. I'm glad I ride a Honda that's kind of tall and fat and looks like a pig and not an insect. I'm lucky I don't own one of those "Buller Bikes".

 

[Kar98]

Soooo...all there /really/ was, was a cop in a hurry?

Remember, kids! Laws are just for the little people!