Is it okay to drive well below the speed limit on a main road?

[ScarboroughFairy]

Hi all, tomorrow I’ll be driving on a main road where the speed limit is 60mph, but I’m thinking of sticking to 40mph. I know it’s well under the limit, but I just feel safer at that speed. Does anyone else do this

ITS OK TO DO 40 UNLESS MOST PEOPLE ARE DOING OVER 50 ... PEOPLE WILL HAVE TO WAIT OR OVERTAKE and you slow as they pass you ... IT S SAFER TO DO 45/46/7 NIGHTTIME ON A QUIET 3-lane MOTORWAY IN ORDER TO SAVE FUEL AND MONEY .......( yOU SAVE a lorra ;
lorra lorra of £money ) .. .... .
EsPECIALLY AT NIGHT IF YOU AREN'T RUSHING . ...SPEED AND RUSHING IS AN ADDICTION AND DEFINITELY EXPENSIVE , OFTEN DANGEROUS . STRESSFUL ,SADLY IT IS NORMALISED ,... it BURNS FOSSIL FUEL WE DON T HAVE and makes you much more stressed , competitive etc

Because overtaking isn’t possible in many sections, traffic will naturally stay calmer and more controlled.

The use of capitals in this post are a precise reflection of the theories about driving speed.

Because overtaking isn’t possible in many sections, traffic will naturally stay calmer and more controlled.

Are you okay?

If you drive at that speed you will get harassed by lorry drivers. Now they should be doing that, but they will as they had delivery times to meet.

This thread just brings back so many memories, 40 years ago today at 9:30 my life was destroyed by a slow driver, when a woman who was late for work overtook them and hit my car head on.
To this date, I still having regular operations on my legs to keep me walking.

if you are not confident to drive, please don’t

You've clearly never driven the A9, have you?

Depends on the road. There are bits of most national speed limit roads that you shouldn't be doing 60 on, elsewise you'd be up on two wheels or in the hedge or crossing the central marker on corners. I have one I regularly use and maybe 20% of the 6 miles distance, I would be above 50. Generally I find my speed is in line with other drivers, I don't get tailgated or flashed at or weird overtakes happening.
Honestly if you're on a 60 for a few minutes or a few miles, and you're doing 40, no big deal. If it's like 100 miles like that, you're just super likely to run into people getting really cross with you and pulling stupid moves overtaking when it's not safe.

An interesting theory! 😂

One problem with the A9 is so many cameras which mean people are watching for cameras rather than watching the road. Suddenly coming up behind a car doing 40 in a good 60 is going to cause issues.

This is like where i live. Even the main roads which are 60, are quite windy and there arent many stretches where 60 is suitable most of the time. There are often accidents because people who dont know the road, or think they are clever, drive too fast. So doing 40 in a 60 isn't necessarily a bad idea but it is the exception. This is rural Wales.

that's not true though as they are average speed cameras not GATSO flash as you pass cameras. You cannot drive at 90 and just slow down to pass a camera.

As a veteran of more than one speed awareness course we were told more than once that there are no minimum speed limits in the UK. Have you ever been stuck behind a tractor on a country road? What speed are they doing in a 60 mph limit?

No - absolutely not - it's dangerous!!!

OP given the weather conditions up here of late then 40 should be OK. There are bigger questions of how your going to drive into Edinburgh without touching some part of the motorway/dual carriageway system.

Yes there are major accidents on that road every week but mostly due to either having to cross it at the junctions or dangerous overtaking due to being behind a slow vehicle (lorries a lot of the time)

why are you typing in caps - are you ok 🤔

Absolutely not. You would rack up a load of minors in a test, so would fail. The speed limit IS a target (unless conditions are unfavourable, of course).

Please keep off the roads so the rest of us can drive safely.

Don't do this, it's really annoying for everyone else as well as potentially dangerous. If you're not confident enough to drive correctly, you have no business getting behind the wheel of a car tbh.

No.

The road i have to use everyday for school runs, clubs, shopping etc is a 60mph road. Not a dual carriageway and it's quite busy, so very few opportunities to safely overtake. Its perfectly safe to drive at 60mph unless very poor weather. Several times a week - especially in the summer when the tourists arrive (seaside town), I get stuck behind someone doing 30/40mph and its incredibly frustrating when you're trying to get to school and stuck behind them for several miles.

If youre not confident to drive at or near the speed limit, hand your license back and use public transport.

You're still likely to be pulled up by the police if you're doing 30mph - or even 40mph - on the motorway or a dual carriageway.

Tractors can't go any faster and only use the roads because they absolutely have to so that's different. There are no speed limits for horses or push bikes either.

This reminds me of a Viz Top Tip: 'Most accidents happen within 5 miles of home - so keep your car in a garage at least 5 miles from your house and that way you'll be almost sure never to have a crash! 😁

Good god,, no of course not. The idea is to keep up with the flow of traffic. It is definitely not safe to consistently drive 20 miles slower than anyone else. I kindly suggest that you're not fit drive if you don't feel safe at 60 mph.

It’s a problem because driving significantly below the speed limit where it would be appropriate to go faster, is dangerous in the same way that speeding can be.
There are plenty of main A roads that are both 60 and single carriageway. If you drive very slowly then you force people to overtake or to be stuck behind you. Overtaking is statistically one of the most dangerous maneuvers when driving.
Drivers who can’t drive near the speed limit when conditions allow and when it’s safe and appropriate to do so, should not be on the road.

Erm - what?

No