You're In The Agora
Welcome to the Net's best new source for commentary on current events, culture, faith, science and much more.
Faith
Confessing Evangelical Evangelical Outpost He Lives Mere Comments Mirror of Justice Religion Clause Three Hierarchies Science Dispatches from the Culture Wars In the Pipeline New Scientist Tierney Lab Liberty A Constrained Vision Asymmetrical Information Becker-Posner Blog Hit & Run Instapundit Positive Liberty The Agitator Volokh Conspiracy Economics Café Hayek EconLog Environmental Economics Freakonomics Free Exchange Greg Mankiw J. Bradfor DeLong Marginal Revolution The Right Andrew Sullivan Best of the Web Eunomia Hugh Hewitt Michelle Malkin Power Line The American Scene The Corner The Left After the Future Ezra Klein Matthew Yglesias Political Animal Talking Points Memo Errata Daniel Drezner Democracy in America Dilbert Blog Lilek's Bleat Overcoming Bias The Sartorialist Hoosiers Daily Contentions Indiana Barrister Masson's Blog Matthew Stevenson |
|
« Movie Review: The Astronaut Farmer | Main | The Founders on Scripture » February 26, 2007Traffic Laws Can Kill
Many traffic laws are inacted because of a misconception by state and federal legislators. They believe that reducing the speed limit will slow the speed of traffic, while raising the speed limit will cause an increase in the speed of traffic, and thereby increase accidents. Their belief is misguided. Colorado's Department of Transportation already seems to understand (pdf) and notes that "Before and After" speed studies show that there are no significant changes in vehicle speeds or accidents after speed limits are changed. As it turns out, a sort of "roadway democracy" seems to offer the best limits. Colorado's DOT explains that the optimal speed limit will result in the maximum number of vehicles traveling at about the same speed, reducing conflicts caused by speed differentials. The 85th percentile speed, the speed at or below which 85% of the traffic is moving, "is widely accepted as being closest to that 'just right' speed limit - a case of Majority Rule." The Cato Institute's Stephen Moore reinforces this view in a 23 page paper titled "Speed Doesn't Kill" (pdf), as does the British Columbia Automobile Association. Moore notes that 33 state raised their speed limits after the federal government's repeal of the 55 mph law in 1995. Because of this, traffic death rates dropped to a record low level in 1997. In addition to saved lives, these more sensible laws offered an economic benefit estimated between $2 and $3 billion per year. Posted by Joshua Claybourn at February 26, 2007 02:49 PM CommentsThis is a great example of the importance of drawing up laws based pragmatically on real science. Btw, I remember back in, like, the early 80s there was a whole "Drive 55 - Save money, gas, and lives" campaign. JC's nice post speaks directly to the "lives" issue and touches on the "money" part; anyone know what the current science is on the "gas" part? Posted by: philosopher at February 26, 2007 04:12 PM | permalink Gas mileage as a function of speed depends on the vehicle you're driving. According to this article, peak efficiency is between 40 and 60 mph for most cars, with SUVs and trucks at the low end of that range and smaller/lighter, more aerodynamic cars at the upper end. Posted by: Eric Seymour at February 26, 2007 04:37 PM | permalink I believe State Troopers here in NY and in NJ are in general agreement with Colorado DOT's "roadway democracy" theory. I don't drive a lot, so I'm usually one of those guys who probably pays way too much attention to speed limits. What I've noticed in the last few years, at least on major local highways and interstates, is that the general rule appears to be "go with the flow," which translates to about 15 mph over the speed limit, or around 70-80, mph, depending on posted limits. The drivers who get pulled over are the ones who fly by you like you're hardly moving and the speedometer's reading 75 mph. Posted by: JohnS at February 26, 2007 06:23 PM | permalink The only speeding ticket I ever got was on I-70 in Eastern Ohio. Speed limit was 65. The trooper claimed I was doing 76; I thought I was keeping my speedometer just under 75, which would be a very average speed here on the East Coast, and I'd still be getting passed. I wasn't overtaking anyone particularly quickly, but it was Memorial Day weekend, so the troopers were apparently set to nail anyone doing more than 10 over the limit, regardless of any other factors. Posted by: Eric Seymour at February 26, 2007 06:51 PM | permalink Speed limits are a joke. Anyone going the speed limit on most interstate highways around the country will be promptly passed by a long line of cars engaging in "roadway democracy." When such people take up the right lane, they really do create a hazard. Posted by: Chuck at February 27, 2007 01:44 PM | permalink Posted by: Chuck at February 27, 2007 01:44 PM | permalink Post a comment |
Those close to me know that I am no fan of certain traffic laws. It's counter-productive, to myself and the public, to force me to drive under 70 mph on a sparsely populated interstate highway. There are also a number of state highways that, in my opinion, carry speed limits which are far too below the optimal limit.|
---- ADVERTISEMENTS ----
|