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Snoop unto them as they snoop unto you

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Re: Snoop unto them as they snoop unto you

#21

Post by throw10920 »

hightrix wrote: post #14
gchamonlive wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apart from the occasional overtaking which you might need the extra speed, the odds you get a ticket from a hidden camera are very low if you just respect the speed limits. Or am I missing some point?

Yes. Many speed limits are set lower than they need to be. On many roads, including freeways, the average speed of traffic is higher than the speed limit. Driving the speed limit on these freeways is dangerous. Additionally, many speedometers read slightly higher than the actual speed. Driving the exact speed limit on many roads as shown by your speedometer means you are actually driving quite slow. Repecting the spe…

> Many speed limits are set lower than they need to be.

...the only correct response to which is to contact the state government and complain while continuing to respect the law. Breaking the law while remaining silent is diametrically opposed to the democratic system that the US, at least, aspires to.

> need to be

...oh, and vehicle inefficiency increases superlinearly with speed[1]. Until the majority of the vehicles on the road are electric, lower speed limits help fight climate change. Speed limits don't "need to be" anything, and picking lower limits when there's a good reason is good.

> On many roads, including freeways, the average speed of traffic is higher than the speed limit.

Because drivers follow this flawed line of thought en masse - which doesn't excuse it.

> Driving the speed limit on these freeways is dangerous.

I guess we need more enforcement, then. Plus, I've never encountered a dangerous situation while driving in the right lane. I suspect that there's an implicit "...in the left lane" on your claim.

> Driving the exact speed limit on many roads as shown by your speedometer means you are actually driving quite slow.

Citation needed for the claim that you're "driving quite slow". I've never seen a speedometer that was off by more than 4 MPH (measured as the difference between that and GPS), and a difference of 4 MPH when you're going 55 is not "quite slow".

> Repecting the speed limit as a strict rule is dangerous.

It's called a "limit" for a reason, and the only reason it's non-trivially dangerous is because of other drivers significantly breaking the speed limit, too.

This has inspired me to contact my local state's transportation department and request that they step up enforcement of speed limits.

[1] https://www.mpgforspeed.com/

Re: Snoop unto them as they snoop unto you

#22

Post by gerdesj »

bigmattystyles wrote: post #15
gchamonlive wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apart from the occasional overtaking which you might need the extra speed, the odds you get a ticket from a hidden camera are very low if you just respect the speed limits. Or am I missing some point?

No, I agree with you. Especially since aside from the driver's safety, a lot of times, speed limits aren't about the safety of those in the car but to reduce the amount of noise due to tires, engines, breaking, etc... for those living nearby as well as pedestrians, cyclists, buses, animals, etc...

[flagged]

Re: Snoop unto them as they snoop unto you

#23

Post by chatmasta »

jbaber wrote: post #13
gchamonlive wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apart from the occasional overtaking which you might need the extra speed, the odds you get a ticket from a hidden camera are very low if you just respect the speed limits. Or am I missing some point?

I used to think this before I moved to the Eastern seabord of the US. Many freeways have the speed limits randomly oscillate to values ranging from 50 to 75 with the flow of traffic pretending the speed limit is always 65. There are definitely speed traps set up in many unexpected 55 zones which I only know to slow down at from familiarity.

But this doesn't invalidate the OP's point... regardless of how reasonable you believe a change in speed limit to be, you're still obligated to follow it, and if you don't then you might get a ticket. And it's not like these changes are unannounced; there is a sign for every time it changes. Surely if you're going to listen to some "speed trap detecting" contraption, you could also look at the signs that announce the change in speed limit? Or better yet, whatever app you're using to detect speed cameras should give you an equivalent ping every time it detects a change in speed limit...

Re: Snoop unto them as they snoop unto you

#24

Post by ben0x539 »

smeyer wrote: post #8
d1str0 wrote: post #4

I saw this talk live but was disappointed the app is $10 to give it a shot. Seems a little steep.

Your comment is an interesting reflection to me of the expectations people have for cheap or free software. You were willing to invest your time and schedule into seeing this talk live, which for many people is a much larger investment than $10. My default assumption of folks on this board is that they're well-off tech workers, which would make it seem even starker in comparison to $10. My comment isn't anything abou…

I like the feeling of hanging out with likeminded people or friends and showing each other the cool stuff we're working on. Asking for (or receiving!) even nominal amounts of money makes it a completely different kind of interaction and puts me in a completely different mindstate.

In my experience, doing the math on monetary value of time spent on random activities or interactions just makes everybody sad and doesn't lead to better decisionmaking.

Re: Snoop unto them as they snoop unto you

#26

Post by grecy »

hightrix wrote: post #14
gchamonlive wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apart from the occasional overtaking which you might need the extra speed, the odds you get a ticket from a hidden camera are very low if you just respect the speed limits. Or am I missing some point?

Yes. Many speed limits are set lower than they need to be. On many roads, including freeways, the average speed of traffic is higher than the speed limit. Driving the speed limit on these freeways is dangerous. Additionally, many speedometers read slightly higher than the actual speed. Driving the exact speed limit on many roads as shown by your speedometer means you are actually driving quite slow. Repecting the spe…

> Many speed limits are set lower than they need to be.

Sounds like you are a qualified expert and know more about road design, traffic flow and pedestrian safety than those doing the job now.

Clearly you need to apply for a position so you can right these so obvious wrongs.

Please, don’t pretend you can do the job better than qualified experts

Re: Snoop unto them as they snoop unto you

#28

Post by genman »

pesfandiar wrote: post #25
freitzkriesler2 wrote: post #2

I always wanted something to watch where their unmarked cars are. Speed traps are the worst.

I'd argue speeding is even worse, but to each their own.

I would argue that general population disagrees with this. +/- 20% tolerance is completely acceptable.

Re: Snoop unto them as they snoop unto you

#30

Post by genman »

grecy wrote: post #26
hightrix wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. Many speed limits are set lower than they need to be. On many roads, including freeways, the average speed of traffic is higher than the speed limit. Driving the speed limit on these freeways is dangerous. Additionally, many speedometers read slightly higher than the actual speed. Driving the exact speed limit on many roads as shown by your speedometer means you are actually driving quite slow. Repecting the spe…

> Many speed limits are set lower than they need to be. Sounds like you are a qualified expert and know more about road design, traffic flow and pedestrian safety than those doing the job now. Clearly you need to apply for a position so you can right these so obvious wrongs. Please, don’t pretend you can do the job better than qualified experts

In many cases those experts are quite dumb and speed limits are arbitrary. You can see it most clearly in Europe where different countries have set different speed limits for similar road conditions. For example in one country the speed limit in highway tunnels is 80 km/h, but in others 90 km/h while the width of the road is similar, or even mostly wider where the limit is lower. The same kind of highway can have 30 km/h limit difference over countries. Some countries recognize higher variance of speeds in the cities than 30 or 50 km/h others don't.
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