Skip down to the Traffic Psychology part.
The Great Speed Debate
Ah, so President Clinton gave the right of each state to determine their own speed limits, eh? Way to go Pres!
I'm for this because, a national speed limit is way unneccesary. Each state can dig deep into their records, not just the numbers, to see what the effects of a certain speed limit does to their area.
And now, each state can decide what they want their speed limit to be. The results?
As of June 1, 1996:
| Speed
Limit | # of states |
| 75 | 9 |
| 80 | 0 |
| 85 | 0 |
| none | 1 |
| Speed Limit | #of states |
| 55 | 3 |
| 60 | 0 |
| 65 | 28 |
| 70 | 9 |
Okay, but why go for the total abolishment of speed limits?
I have a few reasons why, but I've got even more reasons why that shouldn't happen. You'll see.
PROS:
- Insurance premiums don't get any higher with the abolishing of speed limits as reported by Western Insurance Information Service. According to them, what does matter is where the owner of the
vehicle lives, their driving record, marital statistics, the type of vehicle in question, and the number of safety devices that are included within the automobile.
- Speed limits need to be more "realistic." states Mr. Berry of a Newshour report on this very subject. People pay no attention to speed limits, anyways, he states
.
CONS:
- Fuel savings are huge. Eight or nine million gallons a day are saved.
- Highways are not built for such use. People should look at the engineering of the highways to figure out exactly what the highways are used for and what they are built to handle, before making a judgment like this. Taken from AAA Michigan.
- The laws of physics on the impact of car crashes. The higher the speed, the more severe the car crash is going to be.
As for my point of view, I've found way more Cons than I did Pros. I'm almost sure that it is biased towards my attitudes on this subject. Maybe it is because of where I live.
Hawaii is small with little road space for such a drastic change compared to the rest of the United States. A speed limit is needed because there are many places on the freeways where there is traffic at almost anytime of the day except in the wee hours
of the morning. I have a reason to believe that when the engineers made our streets and highways, they did so with the intent that there would most definitely be a speed limit.
Traffic Psychology--our last hope?
What traffic psychologists need to do is to start educating the new drivers, those who are just starting out on the road, right now. I know from experience that it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks, and I have only been out on the road for about
five years. Imagine how hard it is for someone who's been driving for more? This way, at least as the generations grow, they will be more and more aware that traffic psychology can help them.
As for the others, like me, there should be all sorts of advertisements for this subject. I know that I, myself had never heard of traffic psychology before I decided to take this class. Maybe if you announce enough and shove it into everyone's faces lo
ng enough they'll bite. If it will change the way everyone drives, it's worth a try.
