The concept of a maximum speed limit on a highway has always fascinated me. Since everyone on the road has different capabilities and drives a vehicle with different safety and efficiency characteristics, how can the government justify a common maximum speed? If I’m driving a late model sports car with new tires and modern safety features, why am I subjected to the same regulations as someone driving a less capable vehicle? Some people are just more capable of handling the complexities of driving than others, right?
I was a young kid when the national 55 MPH speed limit was enacted, but I remember how slow it seemed, even given the automotive technology at the time. We were told that driving 55 would save gas, and I guess it would have but for the fact that NOBODY drove 55! Even the government admits that there was very little savings realized as a result of enacting the national speed limit. It was a joke then, and believe it or not, it is still a joke in my hometown of Madison, WI. Yes, on our 6 lane, divided freeway we have a maximum speed limit of 55 MPH. In 2019! It’s just insane. It’s insane because first of all 55MPH was a completely arbitrary number generated by some government bureaucrat to “solve” a problem (oil shortage) created by the stupidity of the government to begin with. Also, it’s insane to compare the automotive technology of the 1970’s to 2019. The brakes, the efficiency of the engines (and now electric motors), the overall safety features of motor vehicles today is orders of magnitude better than it was 40 years ago. But we still have to drive 55. Why not make the maximum speed 50, or 45? Wouldn’t that be safer than 55? Here in Madison, when you transition from our local freeway (called the Beltline) to Interstate 90 the speed limit instantly increases to 70MPH. Why is 70MPH OK on one 6 lane freeway and not another? I’m sure our righteous rulers will say there is some reason behind having the same speed limit today as we did during the Vietnam War, but it’s just nonsense, no matter how they try to spin it. Am I the only one who simply wants to get where I’m going as quickly and safely as possible? Speed limits don’t accomplish any of those objectives. History has proven that.
I’ve often wondered what guidelines are used to create speed limits, especially when on one section of roadway there is one speed limit and on a nearly identical roadway nearby it’s different. That phenomenon is evident throughout my town and it makes no sense whatsoever. If the objective is to save energy, one vehicle will have different efficiency characteristics than another, so what’s the point of a common limit? Why not further regulate the weight of the vehicle? Weight has a tremendous effect on fuel economy. Speaking of safety, as we get more experienced driving we become adept at understanding how fast we are able to travel to maintain safety, so why isn’t there one speed limit for younger, less experienced drivers, and one for the rest of us? What about elderly drivers who’ve become less able to react to conditions? Shouldn’t there be a different limit for them? It seems that the best way to maintain safety and efficiency on our highways would be to rate each driver based on their skills and capacity for safety. It would be relatively easy to accomplish by instituting a more thorough test at the DMV. Utilize video game technology to measure individual’s ability to react and drive in a safe manor, and rate each driver based on the results.
The bottom line is that our lives are way too complex to be arbitrarily regulated based on outdated technology and thinking. Sounds like the government to me!