Quote:
Originally Posted by SebC
On the other hand, if you're going in a straight line with a lane on either side and the neareast car is miles ahead of you, you basically need to have a stroke to get into an accident. Slow down for curves, slow down for traffic, and you'll be fine.
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I'm all for an autobahn in Canada. 4 Lanes both ways and no speed limit from Vancouver to Ottawa skip Quebec and re-join in the Maritimes. Police the slow drivers.
The Autobahn has a regular speed of 130 kph.
Cheaper than a high-speed rail!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_autobahns
The German autobahns are famous for being some of the few public roads in the world without blanket
speed limits for cars and motorbikes.
Speed limits do apply at junctions and other danger points, like sections under construction or in need of repair. Speed limits at non-construction sites are generally 100 km/h, 120 km/h, or even 130 km/h; construction sites have a usual speed limit of 80 km/h but may be as low as 60 km/h, or in very rare cases, even 40 km/h. Certain stretches have separate, and lower, speed limits used in cases of wet lanes or in order to reduce noise pollution during overnight hours (usually 10pm – 6am) or in the opposite way, because of increased traffic during daytime a speed limit of 120 km/h from 6am - 8pm is used.
dynamic traffic signs on an Autobahn
Some limits were imposed to reduce pollution and noise. Limits can also be temporarily put into place through dynamic traffic guidance systems that display the according traffic signs. On all Autobahns the advisory speed limit is 130 km/h, referred to in German as the
Richtgeschwindigkeit; this speed is now binding and being involved in an accident driving at higher speeds can lead to the driver being deemed at least partially responsible due to "increased operating danger" (
Erhöhte Betriebsgefahr). Studies showed that the average speed on autobahns without speed limits is about 140 km/h.
[14] On average, on more than an eighth of the total length of the German autobahn network has no speed limit at all, about one third has a permanent limit, and the remaining parts have a temporary limit for different reasons.
In places without a general limit, there are mostly also no restrictions on overtaking (apart from the general prohibition of overtaking from the right side). Therefore, those traveling at high speeds may regularly encounter trucks running side-by-side at about just 90 km/h.[
citation needed] In theory, trucks are not allowed to overtake others unless they drive 20 km/h faster than whomever they are overtaking, but truck drivers are generally under pressure to arrive in time; therefore, such laws are rarely enforced for economic and political reasons, especially since a lot of trucks are from other countries.[
citation needed] The right lane of an autobahn is often crowded with trucks. In some zones with only two lanes in both directions and no speed limit, but a special overtaking restriction for trucks and/or cars pulling trailers. Another German restriction says that trucks are usually not allowed to drive before 22:00 on Sundays and national holidays, except for trucks carrying perishable goods and certain other exceptions such as military vehicles.
Some modern cars with a very powerful engine can reach speeds of well over 300 km/h (190 mph). Most large car manufacturers, especially the German ones, follow a
gentlemen's agreement by
electronically limiting the top speed of their cars – with the exception of some top of the range models or engines – to 250 km/h (155 mph) for safety reasons (such as inexperienced drivers or risk of tire failure, especially when underinflated). Yet, these limiters can be deactivated, so speeds up to 300 km/h (190 mph) might arise on the German autobahn. But due to other traffic, such speeds are mostly not attainable. Most unlimited sections of the autobahn are located outside urban and densely populated areas. The largest part of this route has no speed limit.
Vehicles unable to attain speeds in excess of 60 km/h are not allowed to use the autobahn. Though this limit is not really high for most modern vehicles, it prevents very small cars (e.g.
quads) and motor-scooters (e.g.
mopeds) from using autobahns. To comply with this limit, several heavy-duty trucks in Germany (e.g. for carrying tanks or cranes) have a design speed of 62 km/h (usually denoted by a round
black-on-white sign with "62" on it). There is no general minimum speed but drivers are not allowed to drive unnecessarily slowly (under 80 km/h when there is no speed limit, for instance), because this would lead to significant traffic disturbance.
The following
map with its associated
legend shows the speed limits applied to different sections of the autobahn network.
