100 kph - the magic number whereby someone, somewhere thinks it is safe! Anything over is deemed as unsafe! Where is the science? Does not compute! How many light years old was it mandated? Bet roads and cars have changed somewhat.
franc123,
Apr 1, 8:55pm
Pity driver ability and attitude haven't changed.
r.g.nixon,
Apr 1, 8:57pm
0 kph is safe. If a large truck runs over a pedestrian at 1 kph, it can still be fatal.
mrfxit,
Apr 1, 9:05pm
Specially equipped vehicles with all sorts of measuring devices (apparently). They measure the forces involved when turning corners at specific speeds.
stevo2,
Apr 2, 3:52am
exactly, and why do other countries have different "safe" limits?
klrider,
Apr 2, 5:55am
Perhaps if you could tell us where anyone says that below 100 is safe and above is dangerous? Isn't the general message that you should drive to the conditions and that 100 kph (in the right area) is the maximum?
tamarillo,
Apr 2, 6:00am
Because our constabulary say so. Don't argue. They're coming to take you away haha they're coming to take you away.
bigfatmat1,
Apr 2, 6:07am
0kmph can be fatal as well
whqqsh,
Apr 2, 6:39am
when people are getting licenses that are so unco-ordinated they need park assist any speed when the wheels are rotating is dangerous
mrfxit,
Apr 2, 6:59am
Exactly
socram,
Apr 2, 7:01am
OP is correct. There is no scientific reason. The number is convenient. If accidents happen at all, it has nothing whatever to do with the posted speed limit and everything to do with the quality of drivers.
Why is the UK limit 112kph on dual carriageways, Australia has many stretched of road at 110kph, France, Italy and particularly Germany have much higher limits, but are their accident rates higher or lower than ours - regardless of the roading? (There are crap roads in every country and overall, ours are better than most.)
No munch, the idiots manage to drive badly at any speed and you know that only too well, as you see them every day. If the open road limit was raised, selectively, the incompetents would still drive at their usual 70-80kph, not keeping left, never looking in their mirrors and braking every 100m, crawling round every bend as though there was a tank of water on their laps, whilst busy chatting to and looking at their passengers.
bwg11,
Apr 2, 7:29am
Exactly. Back in the 1950's and early 60's (I stand to be corrected as to the dates as I am relying on memory), the open road limit was 55 mph (88.5 kph). The traffic and roading engineers of the day decreed that was a "safe" open road limit. Some cars or that era, namely, VW Beetles and transversely sprung Ford Prefects, were basically unsafe a any speed let alone 55 mph, whereas most modern cars are rock-solid on the road at 130 kph.
tony9,
Apr 2, 7:39am
It is based on science, although not recent science.
In the days of horse travel and early steam travel many considered that 60 mph was similar to the speed of sound, attempt to go faster and disaster would occur.
60 mph translates to 96.5 Kph so we advanced slightly.
nzjay,
Apr 2, 7:45am
A Canadian recently told me that he was appalled at our "high" speed limits. Over there, 100kph is only if there is a solid barrier between lanes, or a wide grass barrier, usually with a ditch, AND there are multiple lanes to cater for the slower drivers. Otherwise its 80kph, OR LESS on some roads. Some of the multiple laned, barriered roads do have higher speeds, 110kph! He was shocked at us driving at 100kph on most of our country roads.
socram,
Apr 2, 7:52am
The open road speed limit in the UK was just that - open, until about 1964 when someone went apeshit when they heard that someone had been testing the Le Mans AC Cobra at up to 186mph in the middle of the night on the M1! Only then did they bring in the 70mph limit for motorways and dual carriageways and 60mph on single lane roads.
The (UK) Motorway Police right up until very recently, tended to turn a blind eye to anything up to 100mph (160kph) as long as the drivers were behaving. That meant, no tailgating, no overtaking on the left and no swerving from lane to lane or being in any way aggressive.
Politicians have however, demanded average speed cameras on some stretches of motorway even though there was no evidence that speed was a problem and what have generally been regarded amongst the safest roads in the world.
The indications are that they are going to lift the limit to 80mph on motorways and anyone who has ever driven there will know that travelling at 80mph to 90mph is often the norm. It feels perfectly safe.
If NZ has too many incompetent drivers who can't even drive at 70kph safely, there is no reason to dumb down the system to suit them. They should be raising the standard of driving instead, otherwise it will never get any better and we'll continue to produce crap drivers causing accidents.
A good start would be getting them to concentrate.
dublo,
Apr 2, 8:19am
Who was that lady Minister of Transport who brought in the 70 mph UK motorway speed limit. I recall the character Alf Garnett (Till Death Us Do Part) saying "She can't even bloody drive."
intrade,
Apr 2, 8:29am
RE 15 was he also appalled at the 80kph passinglanes here where its only 100kph after the passing lane again with the cops waiting to snap anyone going over 80 kph? and all the drivers who drive 70 to 80 and only drive 100 when there is a passing lane so you cant overtake them without braking THE "law" what is the law exactly some things somone who thinks he can rule over everyone just like mideavel times everyone always wants to be the world rooler. every 400 years a new noron wants to rule the world again and controll the sheep , the ones dont agreeing to the rulers are terroists by there opinions
tony461,
Apr 2, 10:23am
That brought back some memories. Back in those days, he called a spade a spade, literally. A true champion for non PCness. I'm sure Jeremy Clarkson took inspiration from Alf Garnett.
bwg11,
Apr 2, 10:28am
Barbara Castle.
serf407,
Apr 2, 11:09am
Quote - "Politicians have however, demanded average speed cameras on some stretches of motorway even though there was no evidence that speed was a problem and what have generally been regarded amongst the safest roads in the world." I would like to know the cost of camera repairs in the UK versus the amount of fine revenue from speed fines. There is one article that reports 700 destroyed speed cameras in the UK and plenty of pics of charred UK speed cameras on the net.
There is no such thing as a "safe speed" and only someone with a primary school education would try to pretend that that is what speed limits are about.
Of course it's possible you could drive at 250km/h and not crash. And it's possible my boy could somehow get it all horribly wrong and suffer serious injuries while pedalling his tricycle down our driveway at 3km/h.
So the issue is not cause-and-effect, it is statistics.
If EVERYONE started driving everywhere at 250km/h (it won't just be YOU doing it!) would you expect the number of crashes to increase, decrease, or stay the same? Think hard about this, it is a grown-up question.
SO to put some sort of a cap on all of that, we have a mandatory speed limit (an arbitrary speed, let's say 100km/h) that applies to everyone, fighter pilots, racing drivers and their granddaughters alike.
For now the speed limits are what we have, and they are what most people on the road expect you to be abiding by when you come around the corner heading towards them.
If you have a better idea, maybe you should write to your MP? There is probably a reasonable argument to be made that most cars today are VASTLY safer than most cars were 30 years ago (when the limit was 100km/h) therefore the open road limit could be increased to 120km/h.
I don't think an anarchic approach, with no speed limits but a reliance upon the police to accurately estimate every driver's inside leg measurement, is sensible or likely to work very well.
tintop,
Apr 2, 1:14pm
And before that it was 50 mph.
tintop,
Apr 2, 1:17pm
Yes to some of the above - but attitudes have not changed at the same pace.
melonhead1,
Apr 2, 3:12pm
E=0.5MV^2. It gets ugly after V = 27.78 m/s.
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