Question on speed limits

[Lohman446]

Ok.. Im MI its kind of an unwritten rule that the speed limit is +10 as in a 70MPH zone is really an 80

I have to travel to IAO and will be going through Ohio and Pennsylvania in my travels - any input from those that live there?

[Muzikman]

PA is pretty much the same thing. They don't bother with people doing 10 or so MPH over the speedlimit. But Ohio is very different. A state cop in Ohio can tag you while his is moving and even in the other direction. Because of this, they like to nail anyone. Although I have flown though Ohio and never got caught, it's a bad state for speeders. I know a ton of people who have gotten hit. The good thing is they don't appear to report the ticket to your home state which means for us PAers no points.

Sooo, it's too bad that you have to spend most of your trip in OH:)

[Eagle]

Yeah, obey the speed limit and you won't have any trouble.

[Lohman446]

Yeah, obey the speed limit and you won't have any trouble.

Kinda funny how that works isn't it?

[Thordic]

Don't go 90 in a 55 in PA. The troopers don't like to chase you five miles.

Also, it costs about $200.

[Jaan]

Kinda funny how that works isn't it?

When I was younger I worked in local TV and covered a lot of government meetings. The highway department would do a traffic study on a road and many times recommend raising the speed limit. The way they would arrive at that number was by looking at all the factors, how sharp the curves are, how densely populated the area was, and one of the biggest factors was the average speed of vehicles through the area. Most people automatically drive at a safe speed so they would measure everyone's speed, take the highest and lowest 2% and throw those numbers away and average the rest.

Of course all that money spent on scientific studies didn't mean a damned thing. A rep would show up at a meeting and present the state's case and then the chief of police would come in and make up some BS story about someone complaining yadda yadda wink wink nudge nudge and the speed limits would be dropped dramatically ... followed by increased "enforcement" naturally.

Yeah, it *is* funny how it works

PS Buy a good radar detector.

[Lohman446]

I have an issue when in the 70's the speed limit was like 75... I know that cars have dramatically improved since then in both handling and "crash survivability"

[NJPaint]

Alright, I've driven from NJ to MO 4 times now. And I've driven through, NJ, PA, OH, IN, IL and MO.

The worst state by FAR is PA. Then they come in decreasing order as follows, PA, NJ, MO, OH, IL, IN. There are more cops on the road in PA than all the other states combined. I would recommend setting your cruise control at 72-73 and keeping it there. My dad got a ticket for going 75 and I was pulled over but not ticketed for going 76 in the 65 zones. It is simply not worth the hassle. From this side I can tell you this. There is no "unspoken 10+ rule". Its just that everyone does it and the cops can't pull everyone over. That doesn't mean that they can't. If everyone is going 75, go 75. When going accross entire states, stay in the right lane on cruise control, if you are about to pass someone, move to the left and pass then get back on the right. As long as once in a while you have a car passing you on your left, you will be fine. You just don't want to stick out from the rest of the cars. The little edge you gain by going 80 vs 72-73 is minimal compared to the loss on the part of time and your wallet if you get pulled over once. It just isn't worth it.

[Eagle]

Ya know, I'm a diehard American, but the Germans have it right with the autobahn. Roughly an 80mhp speedlimit near cities, no speedlimit in between. The right lane is for passing only. The roads are much better maintaned. You get your license at 18 after about 40hrs of intsruction. Only bad thing is that it costs once it's all said and done close to $1000 to get your license. And they still have fewer fatalities than we do. And while their roads maitanence costs are higher than ours, get this: a study in this country done a few years ago showed that while the government pays roughly $1 billion a year for highway mainanence, we as citizens pay roughly $6 billion a year for car repairs caused by crappy roads.

[Muzikman]

Ya know, I'm a diehard American, but the Germans have it right with the autobahn. Roughly an 80mhp speedlimit near cities, no speedlimit in between. The right lane is for passing only. The roads are much better maintaned. You get your license at 18 after about 40hrs of intsruction. Only bad thing is that it costs once it's all said and done close to $1000 to get your license. And they still have fewer fatalities than we do. And while their roads maitanence costs are higher than ours, get this: a study in this country done a few years ago showed that while the government pays roughly $1 billion a year for highway mainanence, we as citizens pay roughly $6 billion a year for car repairs caused by crappy roads.

Problem is, have you ever been to Germany? It's a SMALL country compared to the US. People who have never been to Europe never seem to realize this.

[Muzikman]

As for PA being bad. I have driven a lot in PA and enough in Ohio to tell you one thing. Ohio is far worse when it comes to pulling you over than PA. There might be more cops in PA, but it seems half the time they are sleeping. I do agree though, stay in the right lane and only pass in the left. That is the law. You are not allowed to travel in the left lane for more than 3 miles in PA.

[rkjunior303]

I've driven cross-country twice. General rule of thumb is 10mph over.

Lemme tell you, on 76, where the limit is 75 -- that made going 85-90 legal (sorta ha)

[Eagle]

Problem is, have you ever been to Germany? It's a SMALL country compared to the US. People who have never been to Europe never seem to realize this.

I've never been to Germany, but I've been to Turkey, Italy, and Spain, and the drivers in all those places are nuts! As for Germany being a small country, I fail to see the point.

[Thordic]

Driving in Italy is controlled chaos. Everyone drives like a total maniac, but they are generally much more polite drivers than I see around here.

[Muzikman]

I've never been to Germany, but I've been to Turkey, Italy, and Spain, and the drivers in all those places are nuts! As for Germany being a small country, I fail to see the point.

The point being less roads to maintain.