From: stephen@sprunk.org   
      
   On 08-Jun-14 16:15, Robert Heller wrote:   
   > At Sun, 8 Jun 2014 19:29:13 +0000 (UTC) "Adam H. Kerman"   
   >  wrote:   
   >> Roadway speed should come from engineering naturally. You can't   
   >> build a highway with generous lane width (for trucks) and curve   
   >> radii, then set a speed limit significantly lower than the road is   
   >> designed for.   
   >>   
   >> I don't buy speed traps as a safety measure.   
   >>   
   >> Still think the best way to improve highway safety is to get the   
   >> assholes off the road and stop believing engineering overcomes   
   >> stupidity.   
   >   
   > Wide open spaces kick in a primal instint to move quickly.  When   
   > crossing an open space, the quick survived and the slow became (big)   
   > cat food...   
      
   In fact, that was a key part of our evolution: the forests of Africa   
   were overtaken by grass about a million years ago, so our ancestors had   
   to climb down out of the trees and learn how to survive in the growing   
   open spaces between them; standing upright made us taller than the grass   
   and allowed us to see predators, as well as being able to run much   
   faster from one group of trees (safety) to another.   
      
   > When one builds a road with generous shoulders, median strips, etc.   
   > people will drive faster.  And yes, engineers do 'over design' roads,   
   > that is designing roads for a higher than posted speed as a safety   
   > margin.   
      
   For decades, TxDOT has been using a "design speed" of 90mph for new   
   highways; the speed limit has been creeping toward that over time as   
   well, with one new highway now posted at 85mph, the highest in the   
   western hemisphere (and only ~2mph short of the entire world).   
      
   As far as safety, studies have repeatedly shown that it is a high   
   _delta_ in speeds that causes accidents, not high _absolute_ speeds.   
      
   S   
      
   --   
   Stephen Sprunk         "God does not play dice."  --Albert Einstein   
   CCIE #3723         "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the   
   K5SSS        dice at every possible opportunity." --Stephen Hawking   
      
   --- SoupGate/W32 v1.03   
    * Origin: LiveWire BBS -=*=- UseNet FTN Gateway (1:2320/1)