COMMON SENSE AND SPEED LIMITS

Most automobiles are capable of speeds of one hundred and twenty-five to two hundred kilometres an hour. Highway speed limits are between 80 and 100 kilometres an hour. Highways based upon construction and maintenance can usually handle 120 to perhaps 150 kilometres an hour. Drivers are all over the map. Generally those that routinely and carefully drive a little over the posted speed limits are well within their and the road's capabilities. Similarily those who drive 80 km/hour on dry, well maintained highways in daylight aren't capable of much more. In fact about 1/2 of them probably shouldn't be there at all. That half will however never get pulled over until they demonstrate their incompetence in a possibly lethal manner.

Same thing with city streets. Low traffic, dry, well maintained roads should never be travelled below 50 km/hour with the exception of course of posted school zones during the school year. Again drivers under excellent conditions driving less than 50 km/hour should be pulled over and ticketed, often and repeatedly. Currently our system whether highway or city rewards inattentive, careless, slow drivers by not confronting their behaviour. What a surprise that we have so many.

Todays Waterloo Region Record carrys this Editorial by the paper titled "Caution needed on speed change". Similarily last Saturday's Record carried an article by Jeff Outhit titled "Lowering speed limits is an empty gesture that won't make roads safer". Both of these articles are long overdue and need to be noticed by our idiot politicians and senior police administraters.