“So Siarad you seem to refute the data which seems to speak for itself .This data re persons killed over the period of a very long time scale suggests either this peltzman data is poppycock or there have been a lot of excceedingly 'lucky' drivers out there. The extremly clever engineers and designers who have given us much much safer and easier cars to drive since I took my test in a Ford eight over 50 years ago are in my view to be aplauded because there are many people who are alive today because of their ingenuity. The 'anti car brigade' perpitrate a propaganda that speed limits should not be raised under any cir***staces because they say 'it saves lives' but the data a I've posted indicates that this is nothing but a lie.”

“miklemus
The safer they make the cars, the more risks the driver is willing to take. It's called the Peltzman effect.”

“It will be interesting if the organisation 'Brake' who predict that there will be death and distruction or words to tjhat effect if the speed limit is raised on the M1. How about them explaining the fact that the year after the 70 mph speed limit was introduced on the M1 the very next year 7985 people died in road accidents -year 1966. The third highest ever recorded.
Since then the accident rates have fallen--year 2006 there were 3201 killed. Car numbers don't forget were 18.5 million back in the 60s but now there are 30 million.
The old cars of that era would not hold a candle to the modern cars of today and as well as the cars safety improvement the drivers have evolved with them. But some would say not. They are living still in the good old days or perhapse the're members of the 'Flat Earth Society'..”

“Siarad2, some interesting perspectives there. I agree with most of the points on here, and I'm certainly not in favour of an 80mph limit. I'm assuming it will be a motorway limit, so Johnskipper's worries about the A303 wouldn't be affected.

Sedgepeat, you're right about F1 drivers not necessarily being road safety experts. Take motorcycle GP racers... many of them don't even have motorcycle licences to ride on the road! I think the media just like the association and connection of this issue and someone famous for driving at fast speeds.”

“The only connection with an ex F1 driver and a motorway is that all traffic is going in the same direction and not mingled with walkers, cyclists, dogs and what have you. Other than that he is not an expert on road driver or road safety expert either.

Mansell not only supports 80 MPH on motorways, which I have no quarrel with either but he also supports road safety profiteering policy which misses the true accident causes and indirectly thus causing more accidents that could've been prevented too; as well as supporting the pointless prosecutions of thousands of perfectly safe drivers.

F1 does not an on road driving/ road safety expert make I am afraid so why trolly him out?”

“johnskipper
Yes you are right to be afraid, people have no conception of human frailties.
At 70 mph we are blind for a distance equivalent to that between the baseline & net of a tennis court, such is the delay of human sight, only after travelling that distance can we react which takes about a third of a second, & then is added thinking time & action time to move the feet.”

“Mikemus makes some good points. I agree that it's the apparent idiocy of a lot of today's drivers, rather than simply 'speed', that causes such terrible accidents these days.

I do a lot of driving for work, and I don't feel safe on the roads at all these days. People drive so close behind you, try risky overtaking moves (I've made several comments in the past about the sections of the A303 that go from dual carriageway to single-lane... some of the rushed overtaking here is frightening), and seem oblivious to the dangers brought by rain, snow, ice etc.

I'm against increasing the speed limit, partly due to the above reasons. Miklemus is correct... a lot of people already hit 90mph in the outside lane. My fear is that, if the speed limit rises to 80mph, that outside lane speed will be hitting 100mph.”

“It's obvious that these 'antis' do not ,I repeat, not drive a great deal on motorways because if they did they would have already observed that the vast majority of vehicles in the outside lane
are travelling at about 90 mph on average and this has been so for a great many years. It's not the fact that a 70mph limit 'saves lives' to quote the cliche it's the fact that at any speed any driver who is very capable at handling his very efficient modern car should only be doing these speeds at the right time. As well as this he or she needs to realise that the appropriate space needs to be rigidly kept to between cars.
I suspect that when it's wet or visibility is decreased there are drivers who continue to drive as if it's a sunny summers day which may have been a very pertinent addition to the crash on the M5.
It seems to be a modern trait that there are the few drivers who blatantly tailgate & seem blissfully unaware of the dire consequences that might ensue.
I am suspicious of these 'do not raise the speed limits under any circumstances' brigade because many of them hate cars and their drivers. If they are car drivers, I feel many of them must have reactions similar to that of a slug & this may well be the reason they are anti speed ----- any speed”

“The 70 mph limit was nothing to do with vehicle capabilities, but was simply made up by the author John Creasy who disliked the speed of traffic going past when he lived near Downton Wilts. It only applied to 'normal' roads, simply being transferred later to all roads for ease without further thought”

“I also think they should do something about lane discipline.
If drivers think that 80 mph is to fast for them and wish to stick to the old out dated 70 - don't venture out into the lane nearest the crash barriers, and don't hog any lane when the lane to your left is empty.
People have no idea how long it takes or how far they travel to over take a vehicle doing 70, when they are only doing a little faster.”