[rustynutz]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/12/13/3091557.htm

Plan to cut rural speed limits
Updated Mon Dec 13, 2010 10:59am AEDT

 
All Tasmanian rural roads could soon have reduced speed limits as part of a proposal to minimise car accidents.

Road safety statistics show a 10 to 20 per cent reduction in the speed limits in rural roads in Tasmania could prevent four fatalities and 13 serious injuries a year.

The State Government together with the Road Safety Advisory Council is proposing sealed roads drop from 100 kilometres an hour to 90 and gravel roads to 80.

Tasmania would be the first in Australia to introduce a statewide reduction.

It has been trialed for the last three years in Kingborough in the state's south and the local council says there has been a significant drop in the number of car accidents on rural roads.

John Gledhill, from the Road Safety Advisory Council, wants to see reduced speed limits rolled out across Tasmania then interstate.

"I think this will be a benchmark for the rest of Australia and I expect there will be other parts of Australia that will embrace this in time to come," he said.

"I think Tasmania is a pioneer and I hope that it does have an impact beyond our shores."

Public feedback on the proposal will be received until February.

[Bel680]

Good luck, all that will bring is more speeding fines as people ignore the new limits.

[snowcherry]

  *insert inappropriate level of swearing here*

ar$e*&le$

speeding in itself does not cause the accidents. inattention to dangers, inefficient 'non safe' roads and people who don't know the limits of their driving/car are what cause accidents!!
this is simply a cop out!  

they did this in Gympie (qld)
they upgraded the old horrid highway stretch into a lovely newer road but there will still sections with blind corners going over hills etc, and the notorious death stretch still had accidents from hoons who decided the lovely new tarmac was even better for speeding.
so they simply cut the speed limit to 90 with enforced police.
in my opinion - and th eopinion of some other drivers i know - the gympie stretch is now harder to drive!
and you know why? because 90 is the 'sleep zone'. when you become so friggin bored you mind starts to wander, and that is damn more dangerous than driving at 100ks and being fully alert!.
i used to enjoy that stretch and now i hate it.

whats the point of a national highway if its throttled by speed zones that only the morally conscious will pay any attention to?

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Dazzler]

I don't like the sound of it either  ..

But I think they are talking country backroads .. not Highway/Expressway which are mostly 110 kph down here (although my guess is these will drop to 100kph) 

Think it has been coming for a while as when you leave town boundaries now in rural areas it says END 60 or END 80 but doesn't say what the speed limit is.. suggesting it will be a blanket figure..

 

[rustynutz]

Road safety statistics show a 10 to 20 per cent reduction in the speed limits in rural roads in Tasmania could prevent four fatalities and 13 serious injuries a year.

I'd love to see these so called statistics.....

[rustynutz]

The "Mercury" has a bit more info....

http://www.themercury.com.au/article/2010/12/14/192981_road-toll.html

[Dazzler]

"Research has shown that if travelling at 90km/h instead of 100km/h, the increase in travel time on average is about 6 per cent," Mr Gledhill said.

"That means if your journey was supposed to take an hour, it would only take an extra 3½ minutes."

Unless you fall asleep ... in which case it might take a little longer 

[Opa_1]

I'm with Snowcherry on this..

Reducing the speed limits is generally a cop out and an backside covering attempt at making our roads safer...Bulls**t!!!!

Many years ago a study was done in Europe (and yes I would have to find the documentation to back up what I am saying) that very very clearly showed driving at lower speed on long stretches of road substantially increases fatigue and in attention thereby creating a more dangerous situation. Higher speed increased awareness and alertness of the driver, not suggesting for one minute these speed should be so excessive as to completely negate any safe driving due to decreased reaction time rates, Common sense has gone out the door and our law makers appear to have lost the plot for the sake of trying to show they are working in the best interest of the public...Bulls**t!!!!

[Lakes]

that's what you get with Greens & left wing politicians.
it will move to the mainland eventually. but what would i know. sorry to all my Tassie mates .

[agentr31]

its simple... aussies cant drive... DEAL WITH IT AND THE PUNISHMENT YOU GET FOR NOT BEING GOOD DRIVERS...

if you want higher speed limits BANG ON TO THE GOVERNMENT FOR MORE DRIVER EDUCATION, instead of sitting back and banging on about how its just to revinue raise, or how driving faster makes you more alert...

[Opa_1]

its simple... aussies cant drive... DEAL WITH IT AND THE PUNISHMENT YOU GET FOR NOT BEING GOOD DRIVERS...

if you want higher speed limits BANG ON TO THE GOVERNMENT FOR MORE DRIVER EDUCATION, instead of sitting back and banging on about how its just to revinue raise, or how driving faster makes you more alert...

Disagree! There are a lot of good Aussie drivers out there and I hope you are one of them.

Speed cameras and the like may have a lot to do with revenue raising and that is a whole other debate.
The issue here is that reducing speed limits is being seen by governing bodies as the way to demonstrate they are working in our best interest by keeping us safer when in reality it is not addressing the root cause
If addressing the root cause is by educating drivers better then I am all for that and that should begin at grass roots level where young people are getting into a car being taught how to drive that car and how to behave in traffic then being let loose in any type of powerhouse vehicle they choose without any follow up on that initial education. Perhaps there are other reasons and I do not profess to know what they are but I do know that modern cars are very well placed to be the safest we have ever had on our roads and are capable of high speed travel well within the limits of those vehicles and perhaps as you say 'beyond' the limits of some drivers.

How long do you think you could stay fully alert and focused if you traveled for, say, two hours or so at 80km's per hour as opposed to traveling that same time at , say 110kms per hour? There is no suggestion here of turning our roads into a race track and yes we should 'bang' on to the government but this should be to make them think about reinstating common sense and stop hiding behind unrealistic laws in the interest of public safety. Speed kills, no doubt about it, but so does fatigue and complacency on the road!! 

[Lakes]

i have not checked for a while but a few years back i remember the road toll in Taz was very low.
i would think dropping the speed to 90kph in Taz would be to rase $ from tourists that don't know about all the mobile speed camera's they have hidding down there. i don't judge other drivers, i just try to do the right thing & avoid trouble. but sometimes it's impossible.

[Dazzler]

i have not checked for a while but a few years back i remember the road toll in Taz was very low.
i would think dropping the speed to 90kph in Taz would be to rase $ from tourists that don't know about all the mobile speed camera's they have hidding down there. i don't judge other drivers, i just try to do the right thing & avoid trouble. but sometimes it's impossible.

The road toll is a bit up and down in Tassie...Remember we only have about 500,000 population.

Here is an interesting article related to 2007..

http://www.caradvice.com.au/9032/2007-australian-road-toll/


This year so far relatively good with 30 fatalities YTD, But last year more than 60...


Before speed cameras and the like it was often over a hundred (even 120)

It's simple physics that when having an accident, the faster you hit the more it hurts and crashing slower mitigates that damage. Crashing slower is in effect offering the same sort of secondary protection as things like seat belts and air bags. No argument I'm sure from anyone here.

But does driving slower help prevent accidents? As some suggest it might even cause an accident through fatigue or complacency. Again, sounds reasonable to me. On the other hand if the speed chosen is beyond the driver's ability it can be a direct cause of loss of control.

So, the dilemma is: do we increase speed or do we reduce speed, because in different circumstances both options are correct?

Pick a side I guess.

I have this discussion regularly with a friend who works with the Traffic Accident Commission here in Victoria. No point for guessing which side he is on.

I'm on the side of greater driver skill in conjunction with sensible speed limits which you may interpret as much higher - not lower, particularly on first class highways.

When I taught my son to drive we spent quite a lot of time practicing cornering faster than I suspect he has since. He also learned to brake with tyres smoking a little but without lockup (in a car that was born well before fancy "brake control computers"). During this tuition he reduced his stopping distance by more than half and came home each time with a broad grin and well pleased with his achievements. I assure you he is by most measures a timid lad and without my insistance he would never have learnt these basic skills by himself.

The driving instructor I passed him onto on the other hand, taught him how to drive straight, check his blind spot etc and generally just how to pass his license test. He never once tried to teach him an actual driving skill. I shouldn't complain because that was why he got the job. However, I make the point that getting a license, at least here in Victoria is simply a procedural thing, do the basics correctly, don't speed, don't forget to stop at stop signs etc..

So then because we send these kids out under prepared we limit how fast they can drive because it's obvious, as I said at the start, that driving slower reduces the chances of someone getting hurt. Once we accept that then limiting everyone else can't be a bad thing... hell it's just so logical.

There are any number of ways to look at this but because slower is intuitively better there can be no other answer.  You can offer up any supporting evidence you want to the contrary but slower will win... just like political correctness will win because it's the fail-safe "motherhood" option.

[snowcherry]

its simple... aussies cant drive... DEAL WITH IT AND THE PUNISHMENT YOU GET FOR NOT BEING GOOD DRIVERS...

if you want higher speed limits BANG ON TO THE GOVERNMENT FOR MORE DRIVER EDUCATION, instead of sitting back and banging on about how its just to revinue raise, or how driving faster makes you more alert...

seriously?
a lot of aussies are crap drivers agreed and i'm all for better education. i'd prefer they spend more money on education than 'speed kills' advertising. mandatory driving lessons in high school or an option to take them if skipping sport, and a mandatory defensive driving class prior to the test as well showing you've driven in all types of weather plus at night.

but where does our speed camera revenue go? where does our rego go? i can tell you it does not go wholly (if barely) towards keeping the National roads safe for us to drive on 24/7.
i have spent the last fortnight listening to the Bruce Highway pothole near my house being ripped up a little more each day by the trucks that hit it at 80ks per hour slamming it with their suspension. few days ago it was about the size of a car on its own accord. the National Highway. i have no idea how many caravans or trailers have been damaged severely by it. it woke me up in the middle of the night when trucks hit it. and yes i wrote to Main Roads about it. i was about to take footage of it and post it here and to youtube when then finally turned up to fix it! and unbelievably they must have paid attention to my email as they didn't just patch it again, they actually relayed it properly like i told them to. and i guess complaints from actual drivers. [i'll find out how well over the next few weeks]

the roads are a joke. our education is a joke. but dropping the speed limit is not the answer especially in areas where they have actually upgraded the road but people still die. it is a cop out by the government pure and simple. they do in part because they think it makes the family's of the deceased happier. and they do it to make it look like they're doing something proactive. countless writing to the newspapers and government cannot battle against this thinking. dropping the speed does not the solve the problem, it just creates a bandaid. telling me i'm a bad driver by default and therefore suffer is not the answer either. i have a done a fair few highway long trips and 'fatigue' or boredom i.e lack of concentration, by slower speed is a real issue. i am not making it up.


and i realise they may be talking about 'back' roads n tassie, but they have done this to the national highway in queensland. bligh seems to have no intention in fixing the highway, and now she will be selling off the brisbane motorways next year to without even finishing upgrading them. apparently there isn't any money left to do it. so again where is our speed revenue and rego going?


and yes i'm pretty cranky today in general.  

[rustynutz]

I could carry on for ages about this but it's late so maybe it can wait until another time....lucky hey?

 

[Rocket]

What an absolute crock of shyte!!!!

Anybody who thinks this has anything to do with road safety is kidding themselves.

Just another example of screwing the Aussie motorist blind. Speed cameras on every bloody road it seems.

Was intending to move to Tasmania - but now they can stick it up their khyber pass, although it is probably just the testing ground for introducing a blanket 90 k limit on all Aussie highways.

All part of the master plan imo, first they sell off the public utilities, followed by introducing speed cameras, followed by decreasing speed limits to make us minions make up the shortfall, followed by a price on carbon in the name of their b/s global warming hoax, followed by...............

Rocket.  

[eye30]

Near me they reduced the speed limit from the national, 70mph, to 40 mph.

Now they stated the reason was because the road didn't have central crash barriers.

Now this road has been 70 as long as I can remember living here, 35 years, and never an accident, may be 1 or 2 minor.

Now everyone tries to keep to 40 and car bunch and one day there will be a big crash as the front car spots the speed camera and brakes!!!!!

http://www.wirralglobe.co.uk/news/8371212.New_speed_limit_on_Wirral_bypass_causes_driver_rage/

[Lakes]

i have not checked for a while but a few years back i remember the road toll in Taz was very low.
i would think dropping the speed to 90kph in Taz would be to rase $ from tourists that don't know about all the mobile speed camera's they have hidding down there. i don't judge other drivers, i just try to do the right thing & avoid trouble. but sometimes it's impossible.

The road toll is a bit up and down in Tassie...Remember we only have about 500,000 population.

Here is an interesting article related to 2007..

http://www.caradvice.com.au/9032/2007-australian-road-toll/


This year so far relatively good with 30 fatalities YTD, But last year more than 60...


Before speed cameras and the like it was often over a hundred (even 120)

Dazz now i know why you need to drop the speed limit down there, i just saw a pic of a Camery Chaser LOL
cheers

[Lakes]

Near me they reduced the speed limit from the national, 70mph, to 40 mph.

Now they stated the reason was because the road didn't have central crash barriers.

Now this road has been 70 as long as I can remember living here, 35 years, and never an accident, may be 1 or 2 minor.

Now everyone tries to keep to 40 and car bunch and one day there will be a big crash as the front car spots the speed camera and brakes!!!!!

http://www.wirralglobe.co.uk/news/8371212.New_speed_limit_on_Wirral_bypass_causes_driver_rage/

Eye, there is your answer! people don't keep to posted speed limit till they see a speed camera & they brake, so if they brake just proves they knew they were speeding. the day you get everyone to do the right thing........

[Dazzler]

Dazz now i know why you need to drop the speed limit down there, i just saw a pic of a Camery Chaser LOL
cheers

I had to google that John.. I guess you mean a Camry with a very bad body kit!!!

[rustynutz]

Eye, there is your answer! people don't keep to posted speed limit till they see a speed camera & they brake, so if they brake just proves they knew they were speeding. the day you get everyone to do the right thing........

Lakes, I don't believe that's proof of speeding, I  think people are just so paranoid of cameras, they'll hit the brakes regardless....

Better to be safe than sorry sort of thing.....

[snowcherry]

Eye, there is your answer! people don't keep to posted speed limit till they see a speed camera & they brake, so if they brake just proves they knew they were speeding. the day you get everyone to do the right thing........

Lakes, I don't believe that's proof of speeding, I  think people are just so paranoid of cameras, they'll hit the brakes regardless....

Better to be safe than sorry sort of thing.....

yup
i'll travel behind some people with my CC set, knowing i'm within or dead on. the car in front of me cruising at a similar speed to me sees a police radar car and brakes like crazy. i have to brake to. they overreact.

[Surferdude]

Eye, there is your answer! people don't keep to posted speed limit till they see a speed camera & they brake, so if they brake just proves they knew they were speeding. the day you get everyone to do the right thing........

Lakes, I don't believe that's proof of speeding, I  think people are just so paranoid of cameras, they'll hit the brakes regardless....

Better to be safe than sorry sort of thing.....

Pretty well every time the driver in front of me brakes because he sees a speed camera, they're already on or below the limit. IMO what it does prove is they were driving happily along with NO IDEA what speed they were doing and braked out of sheer panic (Yet more proof of how unaware the average driver is of what's going on around them).

What is really funny is up here on the Bruce Highway heading north they've set up some "point ot point" average speed cameras. They aren't turned on yet AFAIK. Some issues with calibration to a level which will stand up in court I believe. But almost every driver who passes the first set up brakes to go past it. Which, when they are operative won't achieve anything. Especially if they speed up over the limit for the next 10 or so klms and get pinged when they pass the next checkpoint.

[Lakes]

Eye, there is your answer! people don't keep to posted speed limit till they see a speed camera & they brake, so if they brake just proves they knew they were speeding. the day you get everyone to do the right thing........

Lakes, I don't believe that's proof of speeding, I  think people are just so paranoid of cameras, they'll hit the brakes regardless....

Better to be safe than sorry sort of thing.....

Rusty i would have to agree with you, just i keep the GPS speedo on in the i30 all the time, as i'm getting close to a speed camera i check i'm right on the speed, some area's in Syd you always get people going 10k 15k over the posted speed they will go past me sometimes pull in front then slow down to 10 or 15 k slower than the posted limit, if i have my CC set it's a bitch but i don't complain.
other area's of syd the drivers can be more of a pleasure to share the road with, but no matter there will always be one.

[Lakes]

Eye, there is your answer! people don't keep to posted speed limit till they see a speed camera & they brake, so if they brake just proves they knew they were speeding. the day you get everyone to do the right thing........

Lakes, I don't believe that's proof of speeding, I  think people are just so paranoid of cameras, they'll hit the brakes regardless....

Better to be safe than sorry sort of thing.....

Pretty well every time the driver in front of me brakes because he sees a speed camera, they're already on or below the limit. IMO what it does prove is they were driving happily along with NO IDEA what speed they were doing and braked out of sheer panic (Yet more proof of how unaware the average driver is of what's going on around them).

What is really funny is up here on the Bruce Highway heading north they've set up some "point ot point" average speed cameras. They aren't turned on yet AFAIK. Some issues with calibration to a level which will stand up in court I believe. But almost every driver who passes the first set up brakes to go past it. Which, when they are operative won't achieve anything. Especially if they speed up over the limit for the next 10 or so klms and get pinged when they pass the next checkpoint.

We have a few of those average speed camera's down here too, i was coming back from out west this past weekend, had that happen to me too, the first camera was possitioned at end of an overtaking lane and at bottom of a hill, so everyone had to slow down then we had a good size hill to climb. the good thing about my GPS is it tells average speed so could set it at first point were adverage speed starts and have a good idea if your safe b4 the second point.

[rustynutz]

I get really really frustrated when there are calls for speed limits to be dropped.

Anyone with half a brain knows the speed limit is a "maximum". There's no requirement to actually drive at that speed, especially if conditions don't permit it.
The population is being "dumbed" down into believing that if you don't exceed this "limit" then you are somehow a safe and good driver...
There's no encouragement to go out and better your driving skills, in fact our Safetycrats frown on the idea of our drivers doing an advanced driving course...for fear that they will then drive faster and push the limits of their new found skills....What utter crap!!!

Anyhow, back to this proposed drop in the speed limit.....
This has been coming for some time. I first heard whispers a few years back that there was work going on behind the scenes to have the default speed limit in Australia dropped to 80kph with limits of 100kph only for major highways and freeways. Looks like it's starting to be marched out.....

What makes this all really stupid is that these clowns know how speed limits should be set. It's by the Internationally accepted 85th Percentile, but, I guess if our Safetycrats actually set speed limits this way there'd be a hell of a lot less revenue made....and we can't have that, not when our Governments factor in ever increasing revenue from fines in their budgets. 

[snowcherry]

What is really funny is up here on the Bruce Highway heading north they've set up some "point ot point" average speed cameras. They aren't turned on yet AFAIK. Some issues with calibration to a level which will stand up in court I believe. But almost every driver who passes the first set up brakes to go past it. Which, when they are operative won't achieve anything. Especially if they speed up over the limit for the next 10 or so klms and get pinged when they pass the next checkpoint.

oooh really. where have they put them?

.. in fact our Safetycrats frown on the idea of our drivers doing an advanced driving course...

Do you have a reference for this fact? I have to say, that doesn't sound right to me, if only because I'd give "them" more credit than that.

[Surferdude]

What is really funny is up here on the Bruce Highway heading north they've set up some "point ot point" average speed cameras. They aren't turned on yet AFAIK. Some issues with calibration to a level which will stand up in court I believe. But almost every driver who passes the first set up brakes to go past it. Which, when they are operative won't achieve anything. Especially if they speed up over the limit for the next 10 or so klms and get pinged when they pass the next checkpoint.

oooh really. where have they put them?

Northbound opposite the Wild Horse Mountain Lookout and on the last rise before the drop down to the Caloundra turnoff. They would have been there on your last trip. The hardware went up about the middle of last year or earlier.