On almost any road in Ireland, on any given day, people speed. In many cases the posted speed limit appears to be seen more as a recommended average speed rather than the legally imposed maximum permitted.
The old saying, "it's a limit, not a target" seems to be falling on deaf ears. There is of course the counter argument that many of the posted speed limits are not suitable for the road in question. Nevertheless, they are there for now and must be adhered to.
This isn't always as easily done as you might think. A prime example of this was just prior to the completion of the Newlands Cross flyover outside Dublin. For a long period of time the approach to this from the west was covered by a 60km/h speed limit across all three lanes of the N7. The reduction from the 100km/h limit was due to ongoing construction works. I took this route many times and attempting to drive at or under the 60km/h limit was virtually impossible without being flashed or beeped at by less patient motorists. In fact it was dangerous to do so such was the difference in speed to other road users. Yet in all the times I drove there not once was there any kind of deterrent or attempt to slow people down.
On the flip side, drive around most towns and cities in Ireland, where the speed limit is generally between 30- and 50km/h and most of the time you won't find yourself coming under intimidation or pressure to speed up from fellow motorists. It got me thinking about why there seems to be a real double standard when it comes to obeying speed laws in Ireland. Much like our lane discipline and concept of keep a safe braking distance to the vehicle in front, our adhesion to speed limits on motorways and dual carriageways is quite poor.
This shouldn't really be the case. More and more of our cars these days come equipped with cruise control, a system that is probably one of the least-used features of a modern car. Why aren't we using them? I use it almost every time I'm driving on the motorway, especially when traffic is light. It makes longer drives far less stressful and you can forget about the worry of getting a speeding fine. During my recent drive of the new Honda HR-V, I tried out its new intelligent speed limiter. This system uses road sign recognition technology to actively restrict the car's speed according to the most recent speed limit sign it has passed. It works surprisingly well, although much like adhering to limits yourself, I constantly found myself with one eye on the traffic behind me.
Perhaps it won't be until we all move into some kind of technology-ruled society where all of our traffic moves at an electronically controlled safe distance that speeding will become a thing of the past. In the meantime, how many more lives will be lost or dramatically changed as a result of speed-related accidents? We as road users have an equal right to be there and that also means we must abide by the rules. How many of us can completely and honestly say that we can drive without exceeding the speed limit? How many of you would admit to flashing, beeping, under- or overtaking another road user purely because they were driving too slowly for your liking?
Our cars may be getting much safer and more technologically advanced. They carry more performance, have better brakes and are far more isolated from the outside world than before. But, for now, we are the ones that are still in control of them. Therefore it is up to us to stop making it so hard for others to just drive at sensible speeds.