do YOU drive the speed limit?

I pretty much go with the flow. While doing the posted speed limit in the fast lane is technically legal, it is obvious that doing so is going to cause some people to get crazy, cutting off others, and putting a lot of people in danger. The best thing I know of is to move over to the right and let the speed demons pass. The law can take care of that issue.

Many years ago, I got a speeding ticket and took the defensive driving course to keep the points off my license. In the course of the conversations between the class and instructor, we were advised to keep right except when passing-that is also a law in Texas.

One person volunteered that he purposely drove the speed limit in the passing lane "because it caused others to slow down and made them safe." The instructor jumped his rear end for that tidbit, and advised the person that he could actually be the cause of a wreck. Legal of course to do the speed limit in the passing lane, but they are not put in place for cruising in, mile after mile. I would feel bad for helping to create a situation where someone was hit, hurt or killed for this.
 
Last night about 7:00 I was headed east on I-64 approaching the Route 29 interchange at Charlottesville. Rolling downhill in the left lane I slowed a little and the pack of cars a ways back started to catch up. Once I saw that there weren't any cars getting on I signaled a couple of blinks and calmly moved to the empty right lane.

Then the State Trooper went by. I was doing 80 at that point in my silver 2002 Subaru Forester. The limit there is 65.

John
 
do YOU drive the speed limit?

Nope. I don't write tickets for it either unless someone is being reckless. There is a big difference.
 
Only one person I've ever met drove at or under the speed limit at all times... a parent of someone I went to school with. Actually, it was a few mph under the limit on city streets, and about half of the speed limit on highways... riding in that car was the most terrifying experience of my life.
 
In urban areas, it's been my experience that, other than rear-enders, driving too slow is the major cause of accidents. On top of that, the slow driver is rarely involved.

Other drivers get impatient and perform a variety of less than brilliant maneuvers to get around them, with the result being a resounding crunch, while Mr. & Mrs. Slow continue on by, oblivious to all.
 
They had other people in the cars doing the filming. When was the last time you had a conversation with a passenger while driving above the posted limit?
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I have very good conversations with myself all the time while driving above the posted limit which has nothing to do with my comment.

It had to do with the fact that they were creating a traffic hazard by blocking all the lanes of traffic.

“inattentive manner” means the operation of a motor vehicle in a manner which evidences a lack of that degree of attentiveness required to safely operate the vehicle under the prevailing conditions, including but not limited to the nature and condition of the roadway, presence of other traffic, presence of pedestrians and weather conditions.
 
It had to do with the fact that they were creating a traffic hazard by blocking all the lanes of traffic.
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They were obeying the posted limit, which supercedes any other rule of thumb about slower traffic staying to the right. The point, once again, is that the law itself is stupid. The only reason they were creating a traffic hazard is because other people were breaking the law.

“inattentive manner” means the operation of a motor vehicle in a manner which evidences a lack of that degree of attentiveness required to safely operate the vehicle under the prevailing conditions, including but not limited to the nature and condition of the roadway, presence of other traffic, presence of pedestrians and weather conditions.
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Where does that come from?

And the bottom line remains that the only reason doing what they did was unsafe is because other people routinely break the law. Thus doesn't it seem ridiculous for the limit to be set so low?
 
I always drive the speed limit. Being one that likes to give an extra effort to any task, I generally add 20-30 mph to that speed limit, just to ensure I'm not inhibiting the flow of traffic in any way.
 
It had to do with the fact that they were creating a traffic hazard by blocking all the lanes of traffic.
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I see truck drivers do this all the time. And truck drivers I've talked to readily admit to doing this on purpose to piss of drivers that may want to pass them. If you think these kids are stupid for doing what they did, I hope you hold those truck drivers in the same ammount of contempt.
 
Yes it has a list of lawful speed limits, but no where does it state that other speeds are unlawful.

If something is not prohibited by law then it is legal.

The only thing prohibited is driving faster than is reasonable and prudent.

The fact that you are driving over the posted limit can be used as evidence that your speed is unreasonable, but that does not in and of itself actually make it the case.
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Looks pretty much cut and dry any thing over the speed limit is illegal ("unlawful")

§ 545.352. PRIMA FACIE SPEED LIMITS. (a) A speed in
excess of the limits established by Subsection (b) or under another
provision of this subchapter is prima facie evidence that the speed
is not reasonable and prudent and that the speed is unlawful.
Text of subsec. (b) as amended by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 663, § 2 and Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 739, § 1

(b) Unless a special hazard exists that requires a slower
speed for compliance with Section 545.351(b), the following speeds
are lawful:
(1) 30 miles per hour in an urban district on a street
other than an alley and 15 miles per hour in an alley;
(2) 70 miles per hour in daytime and 65 miles per hour
in nighttime if the vehicle is a passenger car, motorcycle,
passenger car or light truck towing a trailer bearing a vessel, as
defined by Section 31.003, Parks and Wildlife Code, that is less
than 26 feet in length, passenger car or light truck towing a
trailer or semitrailer used primarily to transport a motorcycle, or
passenger car or light truck towing a trailer or semitrailer
designed and used primarily to transport dogs or livestock, on a
highway numbered by this state or the United States outside an urban
district, including a farm-to-market or ranch-to-market road;
(3) 60 miles per hour in daytime and 55 miles per hour
in nighttime if the vehicle is a passenger car or motorcycle on a
highway that is outside an urban district and not a highway numbered
by this state or the United States;
(4) 60 miles per hour outside an urban district if a
speed limit for the vehicle is not otherwise specified by this
section; or
(5) outside an urban district:
(A) 60 miles per hour if the vehicle is a school
bus that has passed a commercial motor vehicle inspection under
Section 548.201 and is on a highway numbered by the United States or
this state, including a farm-to-market road;
(B) 50 miles per hour if the vehicle is a school
bus that:
(i) has not passed a commercial motor
vehicle inspection under Section 548.201; or
(ii) is traveling on a highway not numbered
by the United States or this state; or
(C) 60 miles per hour in daytime and 55 miles per
hour in nighttime if the vehicle is a truck, other than a light
truck, or if the vehicle is a truck tractor, trailer, or
semitrailer, or a vehicle towing a trailer other than a trailer
described by Subdivision (2), semitrailer, another motor vehicle or
towable recreational vehicle.
 
Hey Fal 4 Me, where are you getting that? Truck drivers are not the great evil that some make them out to be. The only time most truck drivers will purposly block all lanes are when passing on a two lane highway, or coming into a construction zone.
 
Lord Nikon,

I wasn't trying to make truckers out to be evil, and I'm sorry if that was how it sounded. There are some evil ones though. Having worked at gas stations or hotels for a combined total of 6 or 7 years I've met my fair share of truck drivers. I'm on friendly terms with a great deal of them, as 30-40 show up at the hotel every Tuesday and Thursday with 10 to 20 every other day of the week. I've asked them and yes, the block all lanes of traffic at times to upset other drivers. They laughed and readily admitted it. The point was that if you think these kids are stupid for doing it, or upset with them for doing it, you should also think the truckers are stupid or get upset when they do the same thing.

Personally, I kinda like the fact these kids did what they did. Depending on your interpretation either A. They showed how dumb current speed limit laws are or B. showed how the police don't enforce this law. It just seems like some on the board think because kids did it, there's no value in it.
 
When I have three handguns and an ammo box with 1000+ rounds of ammo, I drive the speed limit. When I drive with a rifle and a few hundred rounds, a little over. When I drive with nothing at all, I go with traffic(but in the slwer lanes because of the NRA stickers I have makes me a target for the anti-gun cops in California.
 
Fal 4 Me,
Sorry, I may have been a bit over-defensive. I was raised by a trucker, worked with truckers, and been friends with truckers all of my life, and I've just seen too many people blaming all sorts of things on truckers. However, given your further explanation, it seems we agree. :D
 
I drive the speed limit in city limits, around kids, etc. But on the open highway, and especially on roads like the Expressway or Turnpike, I go with the flow. Just last week, in a 65mph posted area on the Turnpike, the slowest cars and large trucks were going in excess of 80 mph. My average cruising speed on the Turnpike was 85.
 
They were obeying the posted limit, which supercedes any other rule of thumb about slower traffic staying to the right.
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In some states, slower traffic staying to the right is a rule of thumb, but in other states it is the law.
 
In some states, slower traffic staying to the right is a rule of thumb, but in other states it is the law.
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I understand. So what does one do when one law is posted but the other is not? Ignorance is no excuse for the law but what happens when two laws contradict each other and you can literally be ticketed regardless of your actions?

Again, the point is that the speed limits are set ridiculously low. Speed does not kill, bad drivers do. If driving tests were a bit more involved than fifteen minutes around the block and a three point turn, if driver education was mandatory for licensing, if seniors weren't allowed to drive after losing their eyesight, hearing, and reflexes, if the government worried more about improving driver ability than generating revenue then maybe these ridiculously low limits wouldn't be necessary.
 
I also live near Atlanta where that was filmed. The speed limit on 285 is 55mph, but you'd better be going at least 70. I consistently drive closer to 80 on 285 and am at about the average speed. 285 is an anomoly though. On hwy 316 (limited access for much of it, speed limit either 55 or 65, goes to Athens), I do 10 over the speed limit, and this is about average. In fact, I drive about 10 over pretty much everywhere I go.
 
A lot of people have said that the cops aren't doing their jobs in enforcing the speed limit laws.......I'm just thinking of every time I'm driving down the highway, come over a hill and see 50 brake lights come on in front of me as we all drive "64 miles per hour" past the cop in the median. I do believe that the speed limits are a bit ridiculous, and that driving too slow can cause incidents, but I don't think that raising the speed limit will make it any safer. We will just be going faster past the people that choose to drive excessively slow. Also, I hope we all can realize that if the speed limit was 75 instead of 65 we would all drive 90 instead of 80. I know I would :D :D
 
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