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Thread ID: 121667	2011-11-05 08:24:00	Sobering thought for faster road speeds	driver (16592)	PC World Chat

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
1242031	2011-11-05 08:24:00	"Several" people were killed and up to 35 injured in a 27-vehicle crash on the M5 near Taunton, Somerset, UK. www.bbc.co.uk This on the back of the announcement a few weeks ago to raise motorway speedlimits to 80mph and all those here who jumped on the bandwagon saying that higher speeds were safe on even NZ roads. All ok until it goes wrong!	driver (16592)
1242032	2011-11-05 08:43:00	A crash like this is horrendous. I doubt if the exact cause is known but I would suspect that speed, following too close and not driving to the conditions would be contributing factors.	Bobh (5192)
1242033	2011-11-05 10:04:00	I dont think anyone would say it is safe on nz roads to increase the speed limit, ours are probably some of the worst roads around. But i think a bit of leniency could be used at times, and with a quota the nz police use that is impossible	Gobe1 (6290)
1242034	2011-11-05 10:09:00	Motorways in Europe are far superior to anything here. 80mph could still be considered slow there, but considered excessive speeding here because the roads are so badly designed & maintained. It would be not driving to the conditions that causes the big pile ups. It happens every year when the fog comes	Phil B (648)
1242035	2011-11-05 20:15:00	The replies highlight the causes of many "accidents" the ability to NOT drive to the conditions. Also highlighted how the preoccupation to blame speed as a cause is epidemic in the way of thinking thats been drummed into this country. However that comes down to the lack of driver training to identify hazzards whilst driving. In other words driving to conditions! With regards to this accident I have heard and this does sound the most plausible it was caused by a jack knifing lorry. Why would a truck jake knife on a perfectly straight piece of road? Either it was mechanical the least likely or more likely it was caused by driver error sudden braking in the conditions etc and the driver of that vehicle probably not even aware of the carnage that was created. Does make you think though 70mph (115kph) limit and 27 vehicles with road effectively 4 lanes wide unable to stop and those trucks limited to 56mph. Hence the reason for something to think about for those who in this country think that our speedlimits and enforcement is to tough! Yet I also agree to much focuc put on speed as being a cause of death on our roads (see first line of post)	driver (16592)
1242036	2011-11-05 22:11:00	Motorways in Europe are far superior to anything here. 80mph could still be considered slow there, but considered excessive speeding here because the roads are so badly designed & maintained. Not all motorways are "far superior". I've struck some tragic dual carriage in Italy that was breaking up with sections closed and diverted through the central divider onto half the other side. This was privately built on the cheap. After the road builders went bust the Government had to repair these lemon roads. Our Government is keen on road building Public Private Partnerships, I hope they are careful with their choice of partner.	PaulD (232)
1242037	2011-11-05 22:24:00	I dont think anyone would say it is safe on nz roads to increase the speed limit, ours are probably some of the worst roads around. I've heard suggestions that long straight sections of motorway (such as the Ramarama straight on SH1) should be increased to 120km/h.	pcuser42 (130)
1242038	2011-11-05 22:57:00	Still be missed it is the stopping distance and attention to surroundings that causes crashes! Something that with respect the ACC is probably the one agency that has focused on as a cause of road crashes. Which contradicts what the NZTA regulations for Driver Hours for commercial operators. See now I have focused on another cause of our road toll for this country! Driver Fatigue. Which is also caused by the types of roading we have and the stresses we as drivers put ourselves under especially those in a hurry to do things. Some of that percieved hurry can be visible and touched in another thread here about speedometer accuracy! There is a lot that can be factored into a road accident not just the speed being travelled. However I digress from the observation about the original post. The UK is set to raise the speedlimit to 80mph on the motorways when things go wrong look how many vehicles unable to avoid this incident! Just consider how many more could have been involved with an additional 16kph velocity!!! Sobering especially since those HGVs are limited to 60mph on the motorways. I noticed that people get upset when someones driving at 90kph in an 100kph area yet thats the legal speed of a truck, bus or vehicle towing a trailer. Yet the UK Trucks are 10mph (16kph) slower and on the single lane farm trails we call State Highways trucks over 7.5 tonnes are limited to just 40mph (64kph). When you take the comparisons in really we do drive fast on our roads for commercial operators especially.	driver (16592)
1242039	2011-11-06 09:03:00	Heavy Rain & Patchy Fog... not really ideal conditions, maybe people should.. I dunno, what do they say, "Drive to the Conditions"? Speed limits on many NZ roads are, imo, too low for the road, but already too high for the average competency of driver here.	inphinity (7274)
1242040	2011-11-06 19:03:00	Heavy Rain & Patchy Fog... not really ideal conditions, maybe people should.. I dunno, what do they say, "Drive to the Conditions"? Speed limits on many NZ roads are, imo, too low for the road, but already too high for the average competency of driver here. Classic lines of contradiction in your post! and judgemental based on hearsay of the cause of the accident. Neglecting to mention driver distraction from the fireworks display nearby. The majority NZ roads are higher speeds as in a higher speed limit than their counterparts in the UK did you not realise that? And thats the thing most of our roads you can not drive at the speedlimit either.	driver (16592)
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