[Surferdude]

Yeah.. I found it a bit scary when I was there last month....Love the way they swap from one side of the freeway to the other at 100kph 

That's nuttin'.

Try the M1. 
They do that at 160kph.  :o

[Ozbrum]

Yeah.. I found it a bit scary when I was there last month....Love the way they swap from one side of the freeway to the other at 100kph 

Yeah Daz you were over I think for your Daughter wedding. That was one of the things I missed we'll drive in the right hand lane of our freeways and other duel lane roads forever and at whatever speed we like and when we are within about 200 metres of our exit junction we'll make everyone behind us slow down as we cut in on the other 2 lanes of traffic so we can leave and bugger to everyone else  

[Kimba]

Seriously, I'm pretty sure some QLD drivers take the crown on bad driving..

Like WA they are yet to fully comprehend the use of a round a bout and the fact you don't need to come to a complete stop (if there are no cars of course).  They don't like to merge and will actually run you off the road rather than let you in.  They like to do 50km/h in 60 zones and then 90km/h in 80 zones. 

It seems that we can't drive well in the wet weather.. even along straight roads we must do at least 20km below the limit (which is a safety thing, I'll admit but there are times when we could be going the normal speed)

I could go on and on about the P platers racing and cutting straight in front of you..

This might not be a QLD problem but it is definitely a Townsville one... 

[snowcherry]

This might not be a QLD problem but it is definitely a Townsville one... 

most definitely a central queensland problem to. they're shocking around here

[Surferdude]

This might not be a QLD problem but it is definitely a Townsville one... 

most definitely a central queensland problem to. they're shocking around here

Yep. We spent 14 years in Sydney from 1994 and were astounded how bad Qld drivers were compared to NSW ones.
We've improved - probably in part due to the large numbers of southerners moving up here in that time but we've still got a long way to go. I taught our two youngest to drive in Sydney and in later  years when they were goiing to Qld by car i had to warn them to be careful of Qld drivers. Neither quite believed me but agreed I was right by the time they got back to Sydney.

[agentr31]

i smash across 3 lanes of highway at 110... noting wrong with that when a gap just big enough for my car opens up... i mean the 5 cars ive just cut off can probably understand the massive rush im in TO GET TO WORK! although ive usually slowed down from 200kph to do it, for safety's sake!

[Dazzler]

Welcome back Ian..How's your back..?

[ridecycling]

When it comes to road courtesy, unfortunately I would not put Australian drivers at the top of the bunch.  My only theory is, over the past 25 years, the regular Aussie had pretty much the same amount of roads as we do today, but with far fewer drivers on them.  

For those of us that are here, we all know our governments and city councils have not added any roads (or improvements) because there are now so many of them in government, to actually pay for anything other than their own salaries makes it impossible to pay for any other real improvements at all.  

Well of course unless they raise our taxes, which they have, but since they increase their own salaries, that is where the tax monies go instead of adding or improving to our roads and highways.

Long story short; we have no new roads and have far more people driving on them than ever before.  Faced with massive congestion and roads that are in no better condition than those used in WWII France, the people are just a bit agitated on their morning and evening drives. Not even Hamish & Andy can fix that hour... or two, or three.

I am however still trying to work out a theory as to why everyone loves tailgating here- that still eludes me for the moment, but I am sure it is related to higher taxes and fewer new roads.  

[Surferdude]

Between 2001 and 2007, Australian road funding increases were on average 9% per annum.
Given that the 2007 figure was $12 billion, that makes an increase of the best part of a $billion in th elast year of that period.
Sorry, but not even Australian public servants/ politicians can account for that sort of an increase through their salaries.

And......
Faced with massive congestion and roads that are in no better condition than those used in WWII France,

Really - so we're all driving on cobblestones?.

[rustynutz]

I am however still trying to work out a theory as to why everyone loves tailgating here- that still eludes me for the moment, but I am sure it is related to higher taxes and fewer new roads.  

I put it down to our artificially low speedlimits......
The drivers behind are trying to "egg on" the ones in front to speed up....

[Bel680]

I am however still trying to work out a theory as to why everyone loves tailgating here- that still eludes me for the moment, but I am sure it is related to higher taxes and fewer new roads.  

I put it down to our artificially low speedlimits......
The drivers behind are trying to "egg on" the ones in front to speed up....

QFT.. exactly!

[ridecycling]

I put it down to our artificially low speed limits......
The drivers behind are trying to "egg on" the ones in front to speed up....

I am not sure what 'artificially low' means; if you are saying your limits here should be higher than they are now, I would in general disagree.  

As far as tailgaters go, I believe you are partially right- I do think the driver behind believes they can just 'push' the driver in front of them - more in line with what I would call a general lack of courtesy.  

The other reason it occurs are drivers somehow think if they give up too much space between them and the car in front, somebody will just fill the slot which seems to happen more often than not bolstering my courtesy theory.

[rustynutz]

I am not sure what 'artificially low' means; if you are saying your limits here should be higher than they are now, I would in general disagree. 

My 'artificially low' comment is in regard to the 85th Percentile...

For those that have never heard of this, the 85th percentile is the speed which 85% of motorists will drive at on a road unaffected by slower traffic or poor weather. This speed indicates the speed that most motorists consider safe and reasonable under ideal conditions.

Numerous studies have shown that the 85th percentile is the safest possible speed limit.

[ridecycling]

I am not sure what 'artificially low' means; if you are saying your limits here should be higher than they are now, I would in general disagree. 

Numerous studies have shown that the 85th percentile is the safest possible speed limit.

So are we saying we just set the speed limit based on what 85% of the people are driving?  So say 85% of the drivers who drive 100KMH in an 80 zone, we should change the speed limit?  Or are you saying the government should just give us all a 15% over/under while we are out driving around?  Not sure how this makes us better drivers or even safer ones, or have I totally missed the point?

The one thing I am pretty certain on is, drivers here have a total lack of courtesy and the government in how it manages its roads are pretty messed up.  The roads are bad.  The signage is bad.  The overall drivers education is bad.

[rustynutz]

So are we saying we just set the speed limit based on what 85% of the people are driving?  So say 85% of the drivers who drive 100KMH in an 80 zone, we should change the speed limit? 

Basically, yes....But in saying that, your scenario is probably a bit extreme, unless of course there really wasn't a reason for an 80kph speed limit there in the first place. You've got to realise (and many really struggle with the idea) that the majority of people will drive at a speed THEY feel safe at. They do it now, even with the 100kph speed limit in place, how often have you seen traffic travelling much slower because of the prevailing conditions such as rain etc? Most people actually don't have a death wish...lol.

This 85th Percentile isn't new....It's been used for many years by traffic Engineers the world over and is the accepted way that speed limits SHOULD be set. Even bodies such as the NSW RTA acknowledge it, dig deep enough on their website and you'll even find the 85th Percentile speed for many roads. (Naturally you'll also find that they say the 85th Percentile speed isn't safe...which is to be expected when the Safetycrats have spent years brainwashing most of us into believing their speed kills propaganda....

Anyhow, I'm not the best at explaining things so do what I did, do a Google search...There's a wealth of information on the subject out there and they'll probably explain it much better than I can....
Cheers 

[MelWA]

The Corolla is old and is in desperate need of redesign. No diesel option...

Yet across the "ditch" in NZ you can buy a new diesel Corolla.

[jamiec]

Check here https://www.i30ownersclub.com/forum/index.php?topic=5124.0 for some of my thoughts on toyota and comments from others, yes i still drive a camry

[Dazzler]

Geez .. your as bad as me Jamie (2am!!)

[jamiec]

Hey Dazz not realy 2am as here in Queensland we don't have daylight savings time so only 1am 

[Dazzler]

Hey Dazz not realy 2am as here in Queensland we don't have daylight savings time so only 1am 

That's ok then...