Why do I hear this so many times. Speed doesn't kill, excessive speed at the wrong time in the wrong place (like outside schools,etc), driving under the influence of drink/ drugs, can and does kill.

 

The cause of 90% of the accidents today are due to poor driving standards and lack of driving appreciation.

 

Most people pass the very easy driving test, start driving without any appreciation of handling, braking, speed and have no knowledge of the vehicle they drive at all. Some people barely know where to put the petrol, oil, water etc let alone which grade of fuel to use, it's worrying.

 

How many accidents pro-rata do they have on the Autobahns. Well about 75% less than what we have on our motorways, so it can't just be about speed!!

 

Speed humps only serve to piss everybody off, only slow down emergency vehicles and wreck the underside of nice low slung sports cars.

 

Speed limits should be increased on motorways to 100mph and a fine given to those who sit at 50-60mph cause they are not confident and should stick to A roads. Also, those that sit in the 2 (yes 2!!) overtaking lanes on the motorway again should be fined £100 each and every time. Mostly women and coffin-dodgers!!

 

Don't even get me started on lorry drivers!! Scourge of the roads and the most rude and inconsiderate people ever!! Then there's caravans....!!!!!!!

 

What has happened to the pleasure of driving?????

 

:tongue:

Agreed 100% :)

Ok, no more coffee for that man :D

Some people barely know where to put the petrol, oil, water etc let alone which grade of fuel to use, it's worrying.

 

:tongue:

Is that another dig at Stu (SMW1) :tongue: :rolleyes: :p :cool:

Tell speed doesn't kill to anyone who has lost someone due to a blown out tyre on the motorway.

 

I speed as I'm sure we all do and I try to do it only in situations where I feel its safe to other users, if I kill myself then thats though but would hate to take someone with me.

 

I think due to the ammount of crap drivers on the road it has become more and more difficult to find a time/place where we can go that little bit faster without becoming a danger to ourselves and others.

 

Not too sure what my point is here but I think I have to say speed does kill, but that is the whole thill of going fast is it not?

I would like to see statistics published - undoctored - showing ALL the factors in road deaths.

 

The ad on TV at the moment where a kid gets knocked over by a skidding car is ghastly but why doesn't anyone ask what the kid was doing in the road in the first place ? He's not on a crossing ! He's run out from between parked cars ! Roads are for vehicles ! There are enough places for crossing where a child is not going to get run over ! Have we abandoned basic education of our children on this ? What ever happened to the Green Cross Code ? Have people - including children - been excused the responsibility for this ? It ALWAYS seems to be placed at the fault if the driver !!

 

A girl was killed outside a school near me last year by a motorbike. She ran out behind a bus. The rider didn't stand a chance. He wasn't speeding but now has to live with that event for the rest of his life. It wasn't his fault. And what was the reaction of the council ? Speed humps ! Cameras ! And on and on.........really f**ks me off.......there were already THREE crossing points that she should have used !!!

 

Ok.........stepping down off my soapbox......

Unless you were exceeding the speed rating of your tyres then the blown out tyre would be the cause there surely...

 

IMO This whole issue comes about in response to the media knee jerk reaction in blaming EVERY accident on speed :xxx:

 

If a pedestrian steps in front of you when travelling eg 43 in a 40 then it immediately becaomes the fault of the driver in the eye of the "antispeed" ( more like antimotorist IMO) brigade :rolleyes: No mention of the fact the pedestrian should have looked/judged the sistuation etc.

 

The general situation of drifting above the legal limit is not dangerous IMHO :rolleyes: And excessively speeding then becomes dangerous driving if its inappropriate anyway...which is covered by a different law which is fine.

 

I get pissed off with the "lock him up and throw away the key" attitude of a vocal minority of this country towards motorists :xxx:

 

Pete

Unless you were exceeding the speed rating of your tyres then the blown out tyre would be the cause there surely...

 

 

True, but the damage to the car/occupants would depend very highly on the speed at which the car crashes would it not?

True, but the damage to the car/occupants would depend very highly on the speed at which the car crashes would it not?

 

Yes it would I agree, however if we all drove around at 10mph surely the roads would be a safer place ;)

 

The actual cause of the crash is being missed, ie faulty/unserviced/whatever tyres - its easier to blame "speed"

 

Pete

I think it more depends on how you stop, i.e. if you hit something very solid, like a tree, at 70 it's game over, the same go's for 140ish. The speed at which you hit pedestrians does make a big difference though, especial when they have scratched my car so I get out and give them a good kicking (just kidding) :D

would a tyre blow out at 10 mph? I doubt it so would this mean the speed is the cause of the blow out?

LOL Thats completely the wrong conclusion :slap: Tyres are made for a purpose...if the dont fulfil it, they are at fault.

 

We could blame petrol for making the car move in the first place :rolleyes:

100MPH limit on the motorway and fine people doing 50-60? You was having some credability to your argument until you stated that bulshit!

 

So you want to make it illegal to drive at the speed where the car is at its most efficeint? You want to have cars doing 100mph when other cars are trying to accelerate onto the motorway. Lets face it not all cars can go 100mph. My Corsa daily driver struggles to get to 70 when the tank is full.

 

Also increasing the limit to 100mph as you said will encourage people to drive 100mph when the car is not desigened to go that fast. On most small cars the brakes will explode at that speed on an emergency brake. Their tyres are not desigened to go that fast and have a risk of over heating and blowing out. Blow out at 100mph on a busy motorway! Thats a bright idea from you.

 

It has feck all of how confident you are on as a driver. With your argument, confident drivers should not be on the road as most car fatailities are caused by miss judgement or being over confident. Like you said its not driving too fast which causes the problems its driving too fast for a corner, or a type of road, and its people with confidence who try to take a corner faster than they should and end up having a head on collision killing all the people in the other car.

 

Every week the news paper has a story of young drivers being killed and apparently not breaking the speed limit, its their over confidence in their driving and car which killed them

LOL Thats completely the wrong conclusion :slap: Tyres are made for a purpose...if the dont fulfil it, they are at fault.

 

We could blame petrol for making the car move in the first place :rolleyes:

 

True, previouse comment retracted. (And please excuse my spelling)

my conclusion

99% of accidents are caused by human error (either party involved)

1% mechanical failure (brakes, tyres, steering..............)

i agree with raising speed limits

i agree with fines for idiots

if i worked as a traffic cop i wouldnt bother about speeding (i.e. 90 on a motorway in good conditions with good visibility)

i would be more concered with idiots who call themselves parents taking kids out whilst sat on the passengers knees!

driving standards need to be set higher! not half an hour in a car with big L plates on. your average cyclist has more road sense than that.

think whats in the distance and what may turn out to be a hazard

be cautious

be aware

enjoy driving

and watch out for :xxx:

 

love the quote

We could blame petrol for making the car move in the first place

 

stats here

 

links

 

http://www.safespeed.org.uk/index.html

 

http://www.abd.org.uk/

 

apologies for long reply

 

p.s. i have acted the pillock before now but thankfully lived to see another day! (a lesson learnt boost on corners :o )

have many of you driven on the autobahns?

 

i found it all made much more sense over there, and the fact that there are no speed limits makes bad drivers use them better. believe me, when you are doing 130km/h in a rented corsa and there is a f**king great merc or beemer heading for your boot at nearer 200km/h - you move back into the slow lane. there are no middle lane crawlers in germany!!!

 

when it rains heavily, they impose temporary speed limits (60 or 70km/h i think) and really enforce them.

100MPH limit on the motorway and fine people doing 50-60? You was having some credability to your argument until you stated that bulshit!

 

So you want to make it illegal to drive at the speed where the car is at its most efficeint? You want to have cars doing 100mph when other cars are trying to accelerate onto the motorway. Lets face it not all cars can go 100mph. My Corsa daily driver struggles to get to 70 when the tank is full.

 

Also increasing the limit to 100mph as you said will encourage people to drive 100mph when the car is not desigened to go that fast. On most small cars the brakes will explode at that speed on an emergency brake. Their tyres are not desigened to go that fast and have a risk of over heating and blowing out. Blow out at 100mph on a busy motorway! Thats a bright idea from you.

 

It has feck all of how confident you are on as a driver. With your argument, confident drivers should not be on the road as most car fatailities are caused by miss judgement or being over confident. Like you said its not driving too fast which causes the problems its driving too fast for a corner, or a type of road, and its people with confidence who try to take a corner faster than they should and end up having a head on collision killing all the people in the other car.

 

REPLY

 

Which is why better driving standards are required, particularly for new and younger drivers. Everyone has their opinions and these are mine. I agree not every car can get up to 100mph currently, but that it a LIMIT. Other vehicles who don't want to drive at 100mph can happily sit in the normal moving traffic lane with the lorries and the coffin-dodgers. I want to be able to get to my destination, quickly AND safely. I don't take unnecessary risks and I have never had an SP30 or maimed a child. This will always be controversial subject and I can see both side of the arguement. But there are too many anti-speed campaigners out there already who jump on the bandwagon and try and totally reduce our driving pleasure to ZERO, just because we choose to drive high powered sportcars. We get taxed enough already, the least we should be able to do is to enjoy what we drive, even it seems to upset the minority of do-gooders in this country!!

 

Even if a pedestrian was drunk, not watching what they were doing, acting irresponsible, or like recent headlines was playing "chicken" with cars, then I'm sorry but why does the car driver always have to be the bad guy!!

 

:mad:

my conclusion

......your average cyclist has more road sense than that.

.....

Sorry, gota dis-agree with you on that one.

Your average cyclist is totally oblivious to the motroist. As I'm sure everyone here has seen before, they pull out infront of you without looking, swearve round pot-holes, other cyclists and parked cars without looking over their shoulders. This is kids, old people, and the so-called profesional cyclists, in fact almost every cyclist does all of this. It is just more of the contempt for the motorist, because they think that the motorist will get the blame for an accident, no matter who caused it.

 

And I say this because i use to ride a bike to work, but then I passed my Cycling Proficiency at school :D:D

 

Dave

I reckon they ought to make all car drivers pass a mandatory motorbike test. When I first started on a bike (about 5 years after having car license) it made me realise how vulnerable and scary the roads can be. Your on a little 125cc and you got cars whizzing past you at stupid speeds. That being honest has made me a more careful driver and much more observant. Second guessing some idiotic car drivers comes easier when youve ridden a bike on the roads too.

Just my tuppence worth

Agree with Jay!

I've ridden a bike on the road before (for about 3 yrs), it does

make you more conscious of other road users, including pedestrians.

Mainly 'cos your'e worried they won't see you in time.

When on a bike you have to think for all the other road users

aswell as yourself, you never know what they're gonna do next!

It was always the plonkers in their xr3's & xr2's on their dads

insurance, they were the worst, From learner to pro racing driver

in 2 weeks!

Now 'cos of rising insurance premiums (mainly due to the afformentioned

plonkers!), these kiddies can't afford to insure ''performance cars'',

so they get a 1ltr nova, stick a maxpower sticker on it, suddenly it's

a ''sports car'' & so therefore should handle like one (which obviously it doesn't), so they drive like Mr Schumacher & end up in a ditch, along

with their passengers, hopefully not killing them, but teaching them a

valuable lesson on driving. At least the xr3/2's were sporty cars, so had

uprated suspension etc....

Most people who own sports cars are ''older'' so should have had a fair

bit of driving experience by then, and hopefully be more responsible!

 

Gone off on a bit of a tangent there!

Anyway....the more cars there are on the road, the more m'cyclists

will be getting killed.....sad but true.

I wouldn't ride on the road again, far to many penis's who can't drive

properly, or idiots with no insurance.

I used to race motocross, thats safer than riding on the road.

At least if you do bin it, everybody's goin in the same direction, & there's

an ambulance there to fix you!

 

Thats my 2pence worth, i'm off for a fag! :cool:

 

So now it is cyclists PMSL:D

Sorry, gota dis-agree with you on that one.

Your average cyclist is totally oblivious to the motroist. As I'm sure everyone here has seen before, they pull out infront of you without looking, swearve round pot-holes, other cyclists and parked cars without looking over their shoulders. This is kids, old people, and the so-called profesional cyclists, in fact almost every cyclist does all of this. It is just more of the contempt for the motorist, because they think that the motorist will get the blame for an accident, no matter who caused it.

 

Dave

 

Now lets see, me on my 23lb mountain bike vs a 1500+kg Z car. I think I know who comes off worse if they come together.

If a cyclist doesn't look over their shoulder when going around cars and gets hit, that's the fault of the cyclist is it? Not the Tw*t in the car behind who a) didn't see the parked car b) see the cyclist and c) put 1 and 1 together that the cyclist may have to go AROUND the car and not wait for high and mighty car driver to pass.

If cars passed cyclists with more than 2 inches between the handlebars and their wing mirror, going around a pot hole wouldn't be such an issue.

Not all car drivers are bad. I know I'm not :D , but a lot are. Very much the "I pay my road tax to own this here stretch of tarmac, so you cyclist f*ck off 'cos you delayed my trip to the little chef by 2.37 seconds." variety.

I have 2 cars, pay 2x road tax, cycle to work because I don't want to die of heart failure at 47. When I do drive to work I, luckily for me, don't feel it necessary to be an impatient as*hole.

 

Matt.

Ok talking of 'not changing the subject' which film is that pic out off?

 

I know, does anyone else? and more importantly can you make the noise????? :D

Ok talking of 'not changing the subject' which film is that pic out off?

 

I know, does anyone else? and more importantly can you make the noise????? :D

 

Bodysnatchers. And to make the noise, shut your kn*b in a door.

LOL Matz, you not wong :rofl:

Ok talking of 'not changing the subject' which film is that pic out off?

 

I know, does anyone else? and more importantly can you make the noise????? :D

 

 

 

Invasion of the body snatchers......... RRRRAAAWWWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE (close enough?)

 

 

Oh, and on the speed front..........ever driven on the continent? Noticed how if you do come accross the odd car in the 'fast' lane they GET OUT OF THE FEKKIN WAY!! Good road manners! I like driving over there! I know it's bad in towns and on some of the country roads/goat traks (we have the same here now!), but on the motorways, they don't sod around and mostly stay to lane 1 where we should all be driving anyway unless we're overtaking! ;) :p :)