We’ve got more than a few gearheads here at Mockingbird, and I thought that the following post from autoblog was a wonderful illustration of St. Paul’s words that “where there is no law, neither is there violation” (Rom 4.15).
When the Utah DOT raised the speed limit on two pieces of I-15 from 75 mph to 80 mph, it discovered that driving habits didn’t change. When the limit was 75 mph, the Utah DoT found that drivers were going between 81 and 85 mph. And now that the maximum limit is 80 mph, it has found that drivers are going between 83 and 85 mph.
You can look at that as less speeding, as the UDoT has, or simply the fact that people didn’t automatically start going 10 mph over the limit, having found a speed that satisfies 85% of them. This shouldn’t be that surprising – even when Montana had stretches of highway with unlimited speeds, it was only a few folks, mostly out-of-staters, that raced at max velocity. And most folks on unlimited sections of the Autobahn aren’t even going 150 mph.
According to the Deseret News, a UDoT official said that accidents haven’t increased, either, nor did they expect an increase in fender benders. What he said has increased, though, is speed differential, which we don’t quite understand. Apparently, the difference between the fastest and slowest vehicles has widened. We can only imagine he was speaking of the 2 mph difference between the slightly higher lower average speed of 83 mph vs the 81 mph from before. Even though one Utah legislator wasn’t happy about the increased limit, saying speed kills, the proof appears to be… well, not necessarily.
For an illustration of 1Co 3.13-15, check out this post.
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COMMENTS
One response to “Less Law, Less Trespass – from the Automotive Dept.”
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I am in full support of raising speed limits nationwide. I speed as an exercise of 1st amendment rights:)
It is not the fast driver that is dangerous, it is the angry or careless driver. Germany knows this, and that is why there are severe penalties for hanging out in the passing lane. If people just stuck to the appropriate lane I bet road rage would drop considerably. Also, I have to agree with the-now-jettisoned German philosophy on ergonomics. Most German automakers did not put cup holders in their cars all the way through the 1990s. BMWs, Mercedes, Porsches, Audis, etc. The explanation: a car is for driving not for drinking or eating in (reference the opening scene from Bad Boys). I understand that it is a bit rigid, but the principle is solid. The Germans gave up this design philosophy when the U.S. market continued to complain. We Americans love to do everything under the sun while we drive. We want all the comforts of home. Just look in the latest Chevy Tahoe (which two of my sisters drive). They have more cup holders than you can count, tvs, navigation screens, coolers for your drinks, and so on.
Anyhow, I'll get off my soap box, and I'll get off of my iPhone because I think I just drove past a police car a second ago;)