B.C. speed limit bump to 120 km/h - does faster = safer?

[trumpethead]

This is long overdue in Alberta IMO. Especially on the QEII

http://www.nationalpost.com/m/wp/new...is-often-safer

[Locke]

Yeah...no.

Alberta is broke and speeding tickets = cash.

Not going to happen here in a million years.

[Cheese]

The older vehicles chugged gas at an alarming rate so driving slower was great...my new car just will not allow me to drive under 120 on the major highways...must be built in.
Driving in the USA where speed limits are 55mph and police are patrolling every 5 miles drives me insane.

[CaptainCrunch]

I would expect that there will be zero tolerance above 120 though. I would get the whole 10 kmh cushion is going to be gone.

[CroFlames]

Old news. I don't know if it's any safer, but I drive 125 to 130 on the Coquihalla anyway, so it's more convenient I would say.

[bossy22]

I like the way BC does it. I'd be all for having adjustable speed limits on the qeII. In the summer, make it 120. In the winter, and lousy conditions, make it 90. And zero tolerance.

[Erick Estrada]

Funny thing is that BC highways are way more dangerous than our flat and straight highways.

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

Funny thing is that BC highways are way more dangerous than our flat and straight highways.

And way more fun to drive at speed!!!

[GGG]

The correct way to do it is let the engineers designing the road place the initial limit then set the road to the 85th percentile speed. Then use ticketing to improve performance on the outliers on both sides.

[TurdFerguson]

Originally Posted by GGG

The correct way to do it is let the engineers designing the road place the initial limit then set the road to the 85th percentile speed. Then use ticketing to improve performance on the outliers on both sides.

OR

police it yourself by ensuring nobody in the left lane gets by you, and your speed limit set cruise control.

I can hear those honks of appreciation already. You're welcome, everyone!

[SebC]

Under the current system, the yellow signs are ironically more reasonable than the white ones.

[Mazrim]

I drive the Coquihalla at least a couple times a year, and I've stopped doing 10 over on it. 130 just isn't comfortable at all, and my car doesn't get reasonable mileage doing it. Some of the other places they upped the speed limits...well, you wouldn't even know it was originally slower. It feels really good on the Trans Canada aside from a couple short pieces.

Originally Posted by SebC

Under the current system, the yellow signs are ironically more reasonable than the white ones.

Alberta's ramp and curve signage is in desperate need of an update. BC went through this process recently keeping modern vehicles in mind, and you can actually tell the difference.

[undercoverbrother]

Are we sure the speed limit on Hwy 2 isn't 130?

[DuffMan]

Driving the highway from Comox to Nanaimo at 125 ish 130 ish and knowing you are only slightly above the speed limit is so much better.

[Nsd1]

Originally Posted by Locke

Yeah...no.

Alberta is broke and speeding tickets = cash.

Not going to happen here in a million years.

They should raise the limit here and ticket anyone that is under or over the limit by 10km/h+. If you're caught in the left lane going under the speed limit, it's a $1000 fine plus vehicle seizure. If you want your vehicle back, it will be another $1000. Boom, province out of debt.

[HotHotHeat]

“Up until the 1970s, at least in the U.S., interstate highway speed limits were quite high. They were set at 70 to 75 miles per hour [112 km/h to 120 km/h]. That’s what those roads were designed for in the 1950s,”

In the mid-’70s, the energy crisis prompted a slowdown across North America, including Canada, where it coincided with a switch to metric.

“They passed a national maximum speed limit, which was 55 mph and that was done for fuel conservation purposes. Not because there were safety concerns. And that lasted here for approximately 20 years.”

Never knew this.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Mazrim

Alberta's ramp and curve signage is in desperate need of an update. BC went through this process recently keeping modern vehicles in mind, and you can actually tell the difference.

Can you elaborate on this? I typically find that 10 km/h over the yellow speeds is usually about as fast as I'd want to go, whereas the white speeds are just completely arbitrary.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by SebC

Can you elaborate on this? I typically find that 10 km/h over the yellow speeds is usually about as fast as I'd want to go, whereas the white speeds are just completely arbitrary.

The yellow signs are generally set up for a cube van type vehicle so cars will always feel a little slower

[Mazrim]

Originally Posted by SebC

Can you elaborate on this? I typically find that 10 km/h over the yellow speeds is usually about as fast as I'd want to go, whereas the white speeds are just completely arbitrary.

To clarify on GGG's post, the Ball Bank testing for curves were originally done with testing equipment using a 1940s model sedan (not a cube van as far I could find when I first read up on this). This Ball Bank test told you speed what to sign the corner at based on the centrifugal force exerted in the corner on the device.

Most drivers today generally can exceed the warning speed by 15-20 km/h with no significant feeling of discomfort, thanks to advances in car and tire technology. BC recently started recommended electronic ball bank tests or even road scanning devices to measure the curves, and also increased the centrifugal force required to mark a warning speed as well.

It's very noticeable going between Alberta and BC now, and Alberta should probably do the same thing.

Regulatory speed limits are a bit more difficult to describe. If you follow the guidelines to the letter when setting your speed, you can still have plenty of variations that make it feel faster to drivers. Sometimes speeds are definitely lowered because of a perceived safety risk, or just politics, and it doesn't seem apparent though.

[SebC]

If you have something hanging from the rearview mirror it's essentially working as an accelerometer. It barely moves on, say, the QEII.