Speed Chatter

German foundations and university organizations often brag over the studies they've completed. 

Today, there's an interesting piece from ARD TV news (public German TV, Channel One) which chats over this curious suggestion by the national auto insurance folks.  In strong words, they kinda admitted that no one (even them) has ever studied the impact of speed limits over various times or periods of the day. 

They lay out several interesting factors.  One is that roads and autobahns are typically designed for higher speeds.  It's like getting on the autobahn A4 just north of Fulda in central Germany and driving direct east on A4 direct to Dresden.  It's a great drive, with scenic views.  With low traffic density, almost no curves, and great quality....a guy could easily accelerate up to 160 kph (100 mph) and not even think about the speed or potential threat to his life. 

The A63 going from Mainz to Kaiserslautern is similar to that experience.....other than the first mile or two near Mainz or the last mile or two to Kaiserslautern, there is no real traffic on the road, and you don't think about speed limits.

From this news piece.....one idea which is put out there....is the idea of speed limits just for daytime use....say from 6AM to 10PM.  This is mostly because the bulk of traffic operates in this time-slot.  Most Germans (I'd take a guess near 90-percent), do their driving in this early morning to mid-evening period.  Rarely are you going to find Germans who are drive between 10PM and the early morning hours. 

But by suggesting this.....what is the new limit that one might prescribe?  No one says much then.

The lack of scientific data?  It kinda stands out.  You can't make a logical decision, based on 'nothing'. 

If they did do a scientific study....would it even be able to suggest something?  That's the other issue. 

You can typically break accident situations in Germany down to five features: (1) weather related (including black ice, or sleet), (2) drivers affected by narcotics or alcohol, (3) inattentive truck drivers (now an increasing problem), (4) drivers not grasping the environment or road conditions, and (5) mechanical failure. 

The potential for wildlife situations triggering an accident?  This is something that rarely ever happens on autobahns....because of the fencing.  The amusing thing for me is that I live in a suburban village which has a 4-mile road leading to it, and over the past six years....there's been at least a hundred accidents where some 'critter-incident' has occurred (deer, wild boar, foxes, etc), and they've even gone to put up a sign at both ends.....to warn folks about this potential (note, you can't even drive 100 kph any longer on this road) accident. 

The question here....even if you did the studies....would any of the five features be affected by a speed limit (say 130 kph)?  To be honest, in terms of weather issues....you'd have to lower speed limits to meet street/road conditions, and we could be talking about it being less than 30 kph....to make a difference. 

Limiting truck drivers to just 80 kph?  That would put them on the road for even longer periods of time, and trigger more attempts to 'cheat' on the system.

Mechanical failure might be added in terms of an accident occurring at 130 kph versus 180 kph.

But here's the thing.....I suspect if you gathered up a hundred normal German drivers (male and female).....the bulk of them (if tested over a month)....probably never went above 130 kph.  I might even suggest that 10-percent never went over 100 kph.  Those residing within the city limits of Munich or Stuttgart?  They may have never left the city limits in the month-long test, and never went above 60 kph within the city.

So is this discussion really going to be resolved if three-quarters of the German public is already imposing their own personal speed limit, and driving at 130 kph or less?   This is the comical side of this whole discussion.

Lets add this one unique topic into the discussion as well.....if all this data was laid out and proven, would the insurance companies then suggest a 'black box' to establish the safer drivers, and offer them up a one-third off on insurance costs?  This is likely where the long-term discussion is going.....mandating the black-box technology.

Eventually, you'd have the other crowd (the group who routinely goes 140 to 180 kph) who opt for the higher rate of insurance (paying one-third more) in order to drive at the higher speed.