Quote:
Originally Posted by sebberry
BlueG2 - by your own admission you are a more of a safety risk than I am, so no need for the name calling. I've never suggested that someone should be permitted to drive at 80kph in a 30kph zone.
As for measuring stupidity - you don't need to IQ test anyone. It's pretty easy to spot a tailgater. Pretty easy to spot someone weaving in and out of traffic. Pretty easy to spot people not making safe turns or failing to use their turn signals.
A big part of what makes "speed" dangerous is the rush to complete a maneuver. Quick, darty lane changes completed in one blink of the turn signal with little space around the vehicles at 10km/hr over the limit is far more dangerous than taking your time to perform the maneuver slowly and cautiously at the same speed.
I suppose you can look at it two ways - speed makes those actions more dangerous or those actions makes speed more dangerous. If you clamp down on the speeders, you still have drivers performing dangerous acts. If you clamp down on the dangerous driving, you can safely have higher travel speeds which translates into quicker more efficient driving.
You're also overlooking the fact that raising the speed limit by x amount does not automatically equate to drivers travelling at x+10. What it does translate into are higher levels of voluntary compliance with the posted speed limit due to the limit being set more appropriately for the road. It's a fact that a driver's speed is subconsciously affected by the type of road they are on.
Finally, if what you say is true and a cop is unlikely to ticket someone for doing 10kph over the limit in the city or 15kph over the limit on the freeway, why make it illegal to do so? All you're doing is essentially criminalizing something that most people are doing safely every day.
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Without going into details of my speeding infractions, like I said, I accepted my mistake, paid for it, and learned from it. The point I was making was that I did not blame anyone but myself for it.
How are you going to measure tailgating? We both know that EVERY single person who gets a "tailgating" ticket will fight it in court, because there is NO way for a police officer to judge the distance objectively. There are also 100000000 variables that could attribute to one vehicle coming within a certain distance to another. Think about how much easier it is to nab a speeder, than a tailgater. I am sure people get tickets for wreckless driving, not signalling etc. When you are driving, how many people do you see weaving/not signalling/tailgating compared to speeding? Everyone speeds right? So why not make an example of them? It is easier to shoot a barrel of fish.
Don't get me wrong though, I totally think wreckless drivers that weave in and out and don't signal/ those who are oblivious to their surroundings, should be ticketed/off the road. At the same time, it is not hard to abide by the speed limit. I don't think cops ignore wreckless drivers, it is just that you don't hear about them, and they aren't as prevalent than speeders. I am sure if a cop saw a wreckless driver, they would pull them over, period.
I may not have any stats to prove it, but those who speed excessively seem to be the same type of people who are in a rush, and those who are in a rush generally are the ones weaving/tailgating/not signalling..
Lastly, whether ICBC or the city wants to admit it, issuing speeding tickets is a money grab. But imo, it is fair, because speeding is your own choice...