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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To wonder who all these people are, speeding?

420 replies

justonanote · 03/04/2022 02:19

Or more to the point, how they think they can get away with it, or clearly do all the time?

I do a lot of motorway driving and I see so many cars doing over 80!

See also dual carriageways near me. People do 80+!

I'll be in a lane sometimes doing 70 and I have cars behind flashing at me to speed up Shock

My question is do people not get done very much for speeding? I wouldn't really think to speed anyway but surely the strong possibility of a fine or more is a deterrent? Do people just not care?

OP posts:
alwayswrighty · 08/04/2022 17:18

@EV117 having lived in Germany for many years and now being back in the UK I feel your friends pain. The only rule was that if you were in an accident on the autobahn and you were at a speed in excess of 180kph it was automatically your fault.

junglejane66 · 08/04/2022 18:53

[quote alwayswrighty]@EV117 having lived in Germany for many years and now being back in the UK I feel your friends pain. The only rule was that if you were in an accident on the autobahn and you were at a speed in excess of 180kph it was automatically your fault.[/quote]
I remember driving at 240kmh in an Audi A6 in Germany, felt a bit fast at first but got used to it after a while. Even if it was allowed in the UK you wouldnt want to, some idiot would pull out of the middle lane at 70mph right in front of you. Lane discipline in the UK is shocking

RumpoleoftheBaileys · 08/04/2022 19:54

This thread (especially for MN) is batshit.

The law is x.

So many posters saying "I deliberately break the law because:"

  1. The law is wrong
  2. I am better than the law
  3. It's different in Germany
  4. I am an experienced driver
  5. Anyone going below 70 is 'in the way'

Come on people.

70mph is the limit, not the target.

Your speedo may or may not be accurate, but that's what you drive to.

Jonny1265 · 08/04/2022 21:02

@RumpoleoftheBaileys

This thread (especially for MN) is batshit.

The law is x.

So many posters saying "I deliberately break the law because:"

  1. The law is wrong
  2. I am better than the law
  3. It's different in Germany
  4. I am an experienced driver
  5. Anyone going below 70 is 'in the way'

Come on people.

70mph is the limit, not the target.

Your speedo may or may not be accurate, but that's what you drive to.

Lots of people are happy breaking the law though, me being one of them. Lots of people feel it is morally acceptable to break various laws and there are things that are legal but may be viewed as morally unacceptable. There is a whole debate to be had around this and what the purpose of the legal system is and with a username like yours, I'm guessing you have an interest.
Footlooseandfree · 08/04/2022 21:22

80 is a normal speed on a motorway. Speed limits on motorways are pointless - people should use their common sense and drive according to the road conditions. People who drive at 50 on a motorway are usually more dangerous as they force lorries into the middle lane and create huge bottle necks. It shouldn’t be hard to all drive in one direction with fairly simple rules.

People driving too fast in residential areas/ country lanes is much more dangerous. Again it’s why speed limits don’t make sense - lots of country roads near me it’s extremely dangerous to drive 60 on.

LondonQueen · 08/04/2022 21:25

I frequently go above 70 on the motorway and dual carriageways, I don't speed much on regular roads (30 or 40mph ones) but on the motorway 10mph doesn't make much difference. I don't go above 90mph though and I've been undertaken at speeds close to this in the fast lane!

ivykaty44 · 08/04/2022 23:07

Future cars will have speed limit installed and therefore if you want to speed you will actively have to push down on the pedal with warnings being given

www.autotrader.co.uk/content/news/mandatory-speed-limiters-on-uk-cars-from-2022

so it will be very deliberate if you get caught speeding in a new car with a speed limiter - which makes me wonder if then speeding will be treated differently

Calandor · 08/04/2022 23:39

No they don't get caught much tbh. I usually feel I have to drive 80 or I'm going to slow as everyone's up my arse. I'd say 80-85 is pretty normal

ISpyCobraKai · 09/04/2022 01:31

You don't have to, you could stay in lane 1.

OnceAgainWithFeeling · 09/04/2022 14:34

@ivykaty44

Future cars will have speed limit installed and therefore if you want to speed you will actively have to push down on the pedal with warnings being given

www.autotrader.co.uk/content/news/mandatory-speed-limiters-on-uk-cars-from-2022

so it will be very deliberate if you get caught speeding in a new car with a speed limiter - which makes me wonder if then speeding will be treated differently

Because cars don’t already come with reduced brain requirements?

One of the reason I’m determined to keep my 11 year old shed on the road is because it makes me use my brain. I don’t even use auto wipers. I don’t need my car to decide how fast I go, which lane I’m in, to warn me that I’m changing lanes or there is someone alongside me (because I regularly check blind spots). I don’t need it to beep if a car is close to me, or if I’m reversing. I was looking at new cars last year and the number 1 question to every salesperson was “can I turn all that off permanently?”.

A friend wrote off her car after reversing into a skip she could have seen had she been looking behind her because she was waiting for sensors to beep. How many cars end up on train tracks or stuck because people blindly follow sat nav and don’t engage their brains?

It’s a big part of the reverse evolution of humans. It’s making us stupid and I’m not playing.

(Awaiting Elon’s space mission and I’m outta here.)

Notanotherwindow · 09/04/2022 17:30

It's already deliberate. Very few speeders don't know they are speeding. If I'm speeding, it's because I chose to.

I'd be very surprised if there doesn't crop up a black market for people to have the limiters removed.

Shade17 · 09/04/2022 18:19

I have a friend from Germany who gets quite irate on the topic of British motorways and driving in general grin she says many of the motorways in Germany didn’t have a speed limit, and hogging the overtaking lane like we do here is a massive no no

I love driving in Germany, the lane discipline is so much better and the double ton is certainly something to be experienced!

ivykaty44 · 09/04/2022 19:19

If I'm speeding, it's because I chose to.

and would you still continue if the car constantly makes annoying noises about it?

EV117 · 09/04/2022 19:24

I love driving in Germany, the lane discipline is so much better and the double ton is certainly something to be experienced!

Also important to note, I think it’s actually part of regular driving lessons and a regular test to learn how to drive on a motorway in Germany. In the UK no one has to do this except for a few who choose to do a pass plus. You learn as you go, which if you think about it is a bit nuts and terrifying - and many people are no doubt influenced by just watching what others are doing when they haven’t been properly taught. The speed limit is supposed to be 70 - but no one is doing it 🤷‍♀️ The right lane is for overtaking - but many just drive along in it 🤷‍♀️ The blind are leading the blind.

OnceAgainWithFeeling · 09/04/2022 19:42

@ivykaty44

If I'm speeding, it's because I chose to.

and would you still continue if the car constantly makes annoying noises about it?

I’d disconnect the fucker.
OnceAgainWithFeeling · 09/04/2022 19:44

@EV117

I love driving in Germany, the lane discipline is so much better and the double ton is certainly something to be experienced!

Also important to note, I think it’s actually part of regular driving lessons and a regular test to learn how to drive on a motorway in Germany. In the UK no one has to do this except for a few who choose to do a pass plus. You learn as you go, which if you think about it is a bit nuts and terrifying - and many people are no doubt influenced by just watching what others are doing when they haven’t been properly taught. The speed limit is supposed to be 70 - but no one is doing it 🤷‍♀️ The right lane is for overtaking - but many just drive along in it 🤷‍♀️ The blind are leading the blind.

A motorway is no different in how it should be used to a double lane dual carriageway a d they learn those.
alwayswrighty · 09/04/2022 20:13

@junglejane66

I remember driving at 240kmh in an Audi A6 in Germany, felt a bit fast at first but got used to it after a while. Even if it was allowed in the UK you wouldnt want to, some idiot would pull out of the middle lane at 70mph right in front of you. Lane discipline in the UK is shocking

It most definitely is!

LakieLady · 09/04/2022 20:55

@sanityisamyth

Middle Lane Drivers cause far more problems on the motorway than drivers driving at 80 mph. Middle Lane Drivers should be banned.
Absolutely.

I went to pick a friend up from Gatwick on Sunday night. It was about 10pm, and the motorway was very quiet. The inside lane was empty most of the way, and I must have overtaken 10-15 cars in the middle lane, overtaking precisely fuck all.

So unnecessary.

TimeForTeaAndG · 09/04/2022 21:19

@EV117

I love driving in Germany, the lane discipline is so much better and the double ton is certainly something to be experienced!

Also important to note, I think it’s actually part of regular driving lessons and a regular test to learn how to drive on a motorway in Germany. In the UK no one has to do this except for a few who choose to do a pass plus. You learn as you go, which if you think about it is a bit nuts and terrifying - and many people are no doubt influenced by just watching what others are doing when they haven’t been properly taught. The speed limit is supposed to be 70 - but no one is doing it 🤷‍♀️ The right lane is for overtaking - but many just drive along in it 🤷‍♀️ The blind are leading the blind.

I thought motorways were now part of lessons after a certain point? Like obviously not when you're still at the learning junctions, stopping and starting stage...closer to test ready.
FrankLampardsBrokenHand · 09/04/2022 22:29

I speed because I drive with the flow of traffic rather than against it. If that's 80mph then that's what speed I drive.

Nobody has been flashing you for doing 70mph in the farthest left lane. So either it was for something else altogether or you were in the wrong lane.

Kennykenkencat · 10/04/2022 01:55

@FrankLampardsBrokenHand

I speed because I drive with the flow of traffic rather than against it. If that's 80mph then that's what speed I drive.

Nobody has been flashing you for doing 70mph in the farthest left lane. So either it was for something else altogether or you were in the wrong lane.

You must live in a quiet part of the country because doing 80 would have the speed cameras flashing every 1/4 mile You would be facing a ban after 10 minutes of driving like that.

If everyone was doing 90mph would you do 90mph
If everyone was doing 100mph, would you do 100mph

What is your cut off point where you won’t go more than a certain speed?

Malibuismysecrethome · 10/04/2022 02:09

Let’s hope that you don’t have a tyre blow out whilst doing a double ton or you will be taking several people with you on your ultimate journey.

1forAll74 · 10/04/2022 03:03

It seems that in some areas of the country, that speeding idiots are tracked down and followed by the police quite a lot. I was watching that programme called Road Wars on tv earlier, and they had patrols out for this very reason.

They were stopping people for careless speed driving, and they then check the people and the cars, and quite a few had drugs in their vehicles, and were driving drugged up too, They flagged one guy down, as they saw him driving along on a busy road, whilst turning over pages in a book on the steering wheel, he was reading it , driving along, and over the speed limit.

The police can't be everywhere, so there will always be speed merchants everywhere, speeding, using phones, drinkers. and those who just get in a car and have to drive like idiots at high speeds.

Newhousesad · 10/04/2022 03:11

I always wonder the same thing

Poppins2016 · 10/04/2022 03:23

An idiotic friend was stopped for speeding above 90. Apparently the police officer commented that they only care about speeds over 80 on the motorway!