Safe Speed Forums

Quite so.

In the daytime on narrow lanes you need to be able to stop in half the distance you can see, because you need to assume that someone will come into view at the same speed as you.

In the nighttime you need to be able to stop in the distance you can see because the danger of a vehicle moving at the same pace as you coming round the corner is negated by the ability to see headlights. As pedestrians and wild animals have a stopping distance effectively of zero, you would still be able to stop for them or anything else if you follow this rule.

So yes, you can travel faster at night on narrow country lanes.

OK, having given your concerns serious consideration I'll see if I can manage 40 mph - so long as it's an NSL area - and the road is very straight.

Best wishes all,
Dave.

Hi

Years ago I was driving in Durham and was following an old guy (around 90) and he was doing around 15 mph in a 30 limit...

Followed him for around 5 miles, then he had an accident, he ran straight into another car, so I stopped to help,,,,,went to help him out of his car and he had a PAIR of crutches as he was too old to stand without them....

I asked him while waiting for the Police , whether he had had many accidents in his 93 years (he told me his age)....he said....and I kid you not......I have never had one but I see a lot in my mirrors....

Even the Police Officer who attended was appalled at his frailty, and when I told him what he had said, he said he would TRY but it was down to his doctor to stop him driving

All the best Brett

_________________
PORSCHE 928 S2 AUTO V8 4.7 LTR 1986 IRIS METALLIC BLUE WITH X-PIPES ,RMB ,PROMAX CHIPS, KICKDOWN SWITCH, K&N, WIZARDS OF NOS - PRO RACE NITROUS KIT 1000 HP.
EX - PCGB UK 928 FORUM MODERATOR - Email managingdirector@pchealthcare.co.uk

_________________
Views expressed are personal opinions and are not necessarily shared by the Safe Speed campaign

ecjohn,

Please check your PM inbox (look towards the top left of the web page).

Going back to the original topic...

I just posted in another thread about differing performance envelopes, having now got my A4 back on the road. This goes back to a discussion that was on these forums a while back, I think about people who react badly to being overtaken?

Over the last few years I've driven on a semi-regular basis:

1995 Ford Fiesta 1.1 (FWD, 50bhp approx)
1999 Audi A3 1.8 (FWD, 125bhp)
2001 Audi A4 1.9 TDI (FWD, 130bhp)
2003 Audi A4 1.9 TDI Quattro (AWD, 130bhp)
2006 Audi A4 2.0 TDI Quattro (AWD, 170bhp)
1992 Peugeot 205 (FWD, 45bhp approx)
1996 Ford Mondeo 2.0 (FWD, 137bhp)
2004 Ford Focus 1.6 (FWD, 90bhp approx)
2002 Mercedes C220 CDI (RWD, 140bhp)
1999 Mercedes C220 CDI Estate (RWD, 140bhp)
2001 Ford Fiesta 1.4 (FWD, 75bhp approx)
2004 Audi A3 3.2 Quattro (AWD, 250bhp)
2005 Audi RS4 (AWD, 420bhp)
2007 Mercedes E220 CDI (RWD, 170bhp)
2007 Audi A4 Cabriolet 1.8T (FWD, 195bhp)

Looking at the list of cars above there's everything from a 45bhp Peugeot 205 running on cheap and nasty no-brand tyres up to a brand new RS4 with a V8 engine on racing slicks and plenty in between.

So I think the problem is two-fold:

Firstly the likes of Grandma Micra, little old lady in her 1.1 Fiesta, middle-aged bloke in 1.4 or 1.6 Focus etc don't realise just how much faster a big powerful car (whether German or any other nationality) will accelerate compared to their little shopping trolley, or how much more grip there is with wide low-profile tyres, etc etc.

And secondly (and I've been somewhat guilty of this myself in the past!) people who regularly drive performance cars tend to forget that the Micras and Fiestas of this world can't accelerate from 0-60 in 4 seconds, can't make that next hairpin at 60mph without ending up in a hedge... and can't stop in 2 car lengths like something big and German will.

So to the dawdlers of this world - go a little quicker but make it easier to pass, don't flash your lights and make rude gestures when someone does pass you, and if you look in the mirror and see a procession of cars behind you then you're going too slowly - speed up by 5-10mph or pull over and let them past.

And in return I won't drive up your chuff when you pull away from the lights because you're taking 15 seconds to hit 60mph. Honest!

_________________
Magistrates rule #1: "Never let justice get in the way of a conviction."

I spotted a couple of "oldies" on the same three mile stretch of road today. I was following the first car who was doing 30MPH in a 40MPH limit....nothing much wrong with that, even though it was rural and used to be NSL up to six months ago, the odd house here and there but no real reason to drop it......the scary part was that this "safe " driver was wandering about the road so much that they kept crossing the white line and was often in the middle of the road even on bends....I managed to overtake on a wider straight but was, even then, aware of him drifting towards me....a mile or so later I found another one doing 24MPH, same road that used to be NSL and now 40MPH.

_________________
My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.