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OK, I sometimes exceed the posted speed limit. Don't get me wrong, most times I am spot on or just below the limit - possibly 95% of the time or
more. However sometimes by neglect, more often by intent, I go past the stated figure. But not by much - 10-15kmh tops. And only when I feel it's utterly safe, if not safer than the posted limit - or the limit is so poorly posted that I simply miss it. So why is it that so many other cars are zooming past me, irrespective of road conditions or surrounding environment?

When I was a newbie driver I regularly pushed the limits. I thought it got me there quicker. However I did feel constant frustration with other drivers who did not share this urge to get there quickly. I also enjoyed the thrill of fast cornering and of the world flying past. I am mostly talking of 15-20km/h over the limit. I soon recognised a few things. Firstly my time gains were often eroded by untimely fuel stops or traffic
signals. Too often that car or truck I just overtook is back in front again. At best I was gaining minutes and not very many, even on a long trip.

I also could see that feeling frustrated if not downright angry was not a good feeling. Much of this came about because cars kept pulling out of
cross streets or changing lanes right in front of me. I saw them as being in the wrong, which technically they were, but I didn't see that by being even just 10kmh over the stated limit I was increasing the risk of someone pulling out by a sizable margin. I was simply closing the gap too quickly for their planned traffic-merging.

Gradually - it took about a year of regular daily driving - I got the message. The real shock was when a dog ran out of a car yard on a highway, straight in front of 6 busy lanes of traffic. I didn't hit the dog but someone else did. It brought things to a head, gave me pause to reflect as
it were. If I slow down I can avoid trouble better. If I look around I can plan for a smooth run in traffic. If I anticipate what could happen I'll have a nicer run. If I stick to the limit better I'll reduce my risk of inadvertant lane-merging 'incidents' and run less risk at intersections.

So I slowed down. My frustrations eased, people stopped pulling crazy death-defying stunts at intersections (well a lot of 'em did, anyway) and I had a lot more time to deal with the unexpected. I also gave myself more room between myself and the car in front. All in all it cost me very little in time and saved me fuel, wear and tear and angst. When the road was truly safe, as free of unnecessary risk as anyone could reasonably imagine I still gave (and give) the car a bit of a fang. I still have some fun, as it
were.

So why are all of these people passing me? What are they thinking? If you habitually speed, do you do it in suburban streets lined with houses, kids and dogs? Or around blind suburban corners littered with driveways? Do you do it when there are intersections left and right? Do you find yourself
swerving around from lane to lane, dodging slower cars? Do you tailgate these infuriatingly 'slow' drivers?

Or do you just speed and let everyone else do their level best to avoid your accident?

Cheers, Rob.

posted by gtveloce  # 11:13 PM 0 Comments Links to this post