Not a good idea, given the appallingly selfish and foolhardy attitudes of some drivers and the often very poor standard of driving seen on motorways and on the roads in general. Some drivers already think they are above the law and drive well above the speed limit as it is; these people will just drive even faster (and have worse crashes) if it's raised. Have always found intriguing the fact that otherwise law-abiding citizens when behind the wheel of a car suddenly deem themselves above the law for some reason - what makes them so special that they can decide the rules don't apply to them? Usually their own misguided interpretation of their own driving skills are to blame. These are the people who cause some of the worst crashes and eventually (if they don't kill or maim either themselves, someone else or both beforehand) they will end up in serious trouble - they deserve it.
I am quite happy with the current speed limits. I don't think they need to be raised. No one sticks to 70mph anyway. If the speed limit were to be raised to 80mph drivers would still drive in excess of that speed. Speed is a contributory factor in a very high number of collisions. Speed is dangerous and the majority of road users, although they may have a vehicle capable of those speeds, are not good enough drivers to be able to travel at speed safely. When driving you need to be aware of what is happening behind you, at the side of you and ahead of you, you need to know what is going on all around you. Some people find that difficult at any speed let alone at increased speeds. 70mph on motorays is plenty fast enough.
70 miles per hour is fast enough, would be ok if everyone kept to it. Now with all the gadgets that tell you where speed camera's are etc, I think you find more people breaking the limit between cameras's. If you changed it to 80 mph it would increase accidents, and just think of the extra fuel it would use when we are trying to save fuel. The faster you go the more fuel you use. You should also drive for the conditions of the road, there is always warning signs to slow down when fog etc but a lot of people just ignore them.
I thought 80mph was the limit !! Then again it shows how much I know as I do not drive ha ha . But on a serious note people should be sensible about their speed limit or accidents will happen it is inevitable really , I do not know how they will enforce it though . When I have been a passenger , whenever there is a speed camera everyone slows down ! so a bit pointless really . So I wouldn't really know but as long as people were sensible then I wouldnt see a problem , but then there will always be silly people .
Most people drive above 70mph on our motorways anyway so I doubt it would make a lot of difference. As for being safe and not having accidents, I think it's more to do with the standard of driving and experience of the driver, rather than the speed they are driving at.
it would be safer to travel faster than 70 mph, we have cares now with ABS, so 70mph is out of date, its bad driving that kills, not speed, don't beleive the goverment crackpots.
I do not think that anyone would drive any faster if there was an increase in speed limit, most people drive at a speed that they feel comfortable with (the current average speed driven on British Motorways is 85mph!), although there are a lot of idiots that do not drive to conditions of weather and other road users, and as 'faithp44' states there are few prosecutions under 80mph, unless the driving is erratic and/or dangerous. I believe the leeway for prosecution leeway is 10%). Bearing in mind that the 70mph speed limit was set way back in the sixties, and that the safety equipment built into cars is far, far, superior nowadays, I think that the speed limit can be increased (speed limits in France, Germany, and Italy amongst others are much higher than in Britain). The main problem is lack of driving skill, roadcraft is not taught at all anymore, and there are very few places to practise Motorway driving (which I actually find easier than most roads!). For the record, I drive as fast as conditions will allow, often above the speed limit, which is normally at 80-85mph because that is the speed of the traffic flow and it could be unsafe to drive at the speed limit! However, I am also an Advanced Driver, and have passed the Police Drivers tests and used to be a Military Chauffeur.
I find that people always go over the limit anyway on the motorway. If there are warning signs up to drive at 50 mph, they slow down to 65 mph - but maybe take a little more care. If the limit is 30mph they do 40. I think the only real difference is they drive with increased awareness that there may be a problem and they may have to suddenly stop. The fact is (as far as I'm aware - don't bet your license on this) that the Police generally give Leeway of 10% +2mph before they prosecute. This means that, in a 70mph area, you can drive at 79mph before they would prosecute. If the limit were raised to 80 mph that would mean that they won't prosecute below 90mph. I think that bit of leeway is important because road conditions change and we can't constantly watch the speedo - it's a good idea to watch the road as well. But to allow drivers to do 90 mph without danger of prosecution is getting into dangerous territory. I think it's safer to keep the limit at 70 mph and allow some leeway, than to put it up to 80 mph with no leeway.
70 miles per hour is fast enough for anybody thankyou, why on earth would anybody want to or in fact need to go any faster? There are enough accidents happening all the time now that it is only seventy so if the speed limit is put up to eighty there are going to be a darn sight more. The faster any person drives the less control they have so to put up any higher is just asking for trouble. No it should definitely be left where it is.
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