Speed camera detectors to be banned

[TeaLeaf]

Originally posted by BlueBall@Jul 20 2004, 09:18 PM

Its about 10pm at night with the road fairly empty. I accelerate off from the top increasing speed to around 75. A car is sitting right on my back bumper, so I hammer it. Getting up to around 90 I cross into the hatched area to overtake a couple of cars, pulling back in and increasing speed to around 120.

[/b]

Oooo, a small prize for anyone (except BB) who can find this quote on the website

TL.

[Anonymous]

Don't cheat and google for it. TL will DNA test your electrons in your post to see if they can be cross matched with Google and the quote

[Whitey]

I don't agree with you on the "anyone doing 120 should be put away".  The person in the article you quote was obviously driving dangerously and putting other people at risk and should have their license taken away (or locked up) but someone in the new Merc/Maclaren (or most super cars) can stop from 120 as quickly as someone in a Ford Fiesta can from 60 and as long as they are not driving dangerously on a quiet piece of motorway I don't see why they should be put in jail.  Other countries have roads with unrestricted speeds, why can't we?

I've seen much more dangerous driving from elderly people who's reaction times are much worse and only doing 50-60 MPH, should they be locked up?  :whistle:

[Anonymous]

yes  :devil:

[Anonymous]

Alright. More serious response. My comment of "deserves to be put away" was meant more as an generalisation than as an exact description of what should happen.

In my experience most drivers on UK roads are under-trained, not capable of concentrating to the level required for driving at speed (any speed) and generally inconsiderate of any other road use.

I will have at least two people every single day who will tailgate me at less than half a car distance at speeds in excess of 40 mile an hour. I am sorry but if i break suddenly they have used up their reaction time before their foot hits the pedal.

yesterday i saw a guy turning right on a roundabout while indicating left, with a mobile phone held to his ear and a cigarette in the other hand.

I could go on listing examples of crud driving, people driving too fast etc etc but we have all seen them. Putting people away isn't the answer. It is the same with crime. Locking most people up in prison doesn't solve the problem - it only moves it somewhere else. The only way to really sort out driving is to get drivers to WANT to drive well. At present they don't and if anyone has smart ideas about how we could achieve that I'd love to hear them.

[Zok]

I have a theory.

[TeaLeaf]

/me waits with baited breath to hear the theory

TL.

[Whitey]

Here is an idea not many people would like......
I think everyone should have to resit a driving test every 5-10 years  :ph34r:

That would mean all the older people who passed the driving test when you only had to be able to sit in the car, would have to learn to drive properly.  

I agree with you on all of the points in your last post BB, bad driving should be dealt with, it was just that driving at speed should not be automatically classed as bad/dangerous. It all depends on the conditions/vehicle and driver involved.  

[Doorman]

Originally posted by BlueBall@Jul 20 2004, 10:18 PM

.

I will have at least two people every single day who will tailgate me at less than half a car distance at speeds in excess of 40 mile an hour. I am sorry but if i break suddenly they have used up their reaction time before their foot hits the pedal.



 if anyone has smart ideas about how we could achieve that I'd love to hear them.

I have long held the opinion that the best safety feature any car could have is to have a 9" stainless steel spike protruding from the steering wheel boss. That, coupled with the removal of seatbelts and airbags ought to deter tailgaters.  :devil:  On second thoughts, people would be too dumb to figure it out  

[Zok]

Originally posted by TeaLeaf@Jul 21 2004, 06:18 AM
/me waits with baited breath to hear the theory

TL.

Sorry, been sleep since then :mellow:

[suicidal_monkey]

Originally posted by Zok+Jul 21 2004, 09:23 AM-->

[Jamoe]

ok

2 cars one going 60mph and one going 120 mph.

both drivers have same reaction time. Lets say for arguments it takes them 2 seconds from seeing an obstruction to them breaking.

in those 2 seconds the car going 120 mph has travelled twice as far as the car going 60mph.

lets say it takes 15 meters for the car going 60mph to stop. in those 2 seconds hes gone 5 meters. In total its taken him 20 meters to stop.

The car going 120 mph, again taken him 2 seconds but hes gone 10 meters as hes going twice as fast. Lets say hes that fancy mclaren car and stops same speed as the feista going 60 mph, so thats 15 meters to stop. Total is 25 meters.

If the obstruction is a kid walking out into the road 22 meters whos hit him!


Ok, so the figures are nonsense but they prove the point that speed kills.

..and just because someone thinks they are a safe driver and will go 120mph, what about the other n00bs on the road. You might not cause the accident but you aint walking away from it if you were going that fast.


imo there no such thing as a safe driver.

[suicidal_monkey]

nice numbers there...
60mph is about 100kmh which is about 28m/s so 120mph is about 56m/s plus say you take 0.5 seconds to react, another 0.5 seconds to put your foot on the brake pedal, and then decelerate evenly at 14m/s/s (lose 14 m/s each second)

60mph = 28m reaction(1s) + 28m braking(2s) = 56m in 3s
120mph = 56m reaction(1s) + 112m braking(4s) = 168m in 5s

of course to work out real braking distances you'd need to know the actual deceleration rate, whether or not the tyres lose traction and start to skid etc. Basically,  the braking distance goes up rapidly with speed (it's not a linear thing...)

Originally posted by Jamoe@Jul 21 2004, 01:37 PM
imo there no such thing as a safe driver.

That's the real issue really. The best solution in terms of road safety would be to set up a stunningly incredible automated transport system, sort of like public transport crossed with taxis (e.g. minority report...) Little automated carriages that draw up anywhere and take you to exactly where you want to go. They could link into bigger transport networks like rial/tube for longer distances.

Of course you'd have to build many more racetracks for "real" cars and karts etc :devil:

[DarkAngel]

I agree that everyone should resit their tests sayevery 10 years tho i think that you would have to book for it years in advance due to a shortage of driving instuctors.

120? Isnt if you go ver like 128 a pssed camera does not work?

As one of my friends owns a motorcycle and did about 130 and a mobile speedcamera could not get him...

[suicidal_monkey]

Originally posted by DarkAngel@Jul 21 2004, 03:15 PM
120? Isnt if you go ver like 128 a pssed camera does not work?

didn't they testthat on topgear or something and decide that you'd need to be going something a bit more in the region of 170+? :blink:

Of course the cop has to capable of keeping the mobile speed camera pointed at you long enough to get a reading...