Live data from Hacker News

Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

fastcompany.com

871–880 of 954 posts

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#871
post #205

There are cars that can go way over 100 mph, and they almost all speed controlled by software. High performance cars are often speed limited by software to about 150 mph. How is this legal? Cars with speed limits that high belong to the track, not public roads, with a possible exception for emergency vehicles. There are some rare (emergency) situations where "superspeeding" might help, but I can think of many others…

Just limit it to 70 mph max, and require some sort of application to be filed to have it disabled. If that application can't be done at time of sale, most people won't bother.

Why 70? The maximum posted speed limit in the US is 85.

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#872

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except that driving at a speed significantly different from the surrounding traffic increases the risk of a crash.

Speeding is one of the leading causes of fatal accidents. Tailgating is one of the leading causes of non-fatal accidents. Sounds like it's safer for me to let people tailgate me at the speed limit.

Many of the people killed by speeding are not, themselves, speeding.

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#873

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cars are the leading cause of death of children in the US. More than cancer. Maybe you're right, I don't know, but it's not the "obvious goal".

Cars are also indirectly a huge cause of early death due to health problems caused by sedentary lifestyle.

I agree with you but addressing that wouldn't be a goal of this particular policy.

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#874

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> excellent public transit Traveling by train ... is it some sarcasm or you've never been to Germany?

Local transit is usually decent. Regional trains are also much better than the long distance ones. The long distance ones are a disaster in Germany, whereas in the US, they don't meaningfully exist.

Local transit?.. Sure the S and U bahns are (rather) fine, but the alternative are regular roads at regular speed - the highways in such areas are speed limited (e.g. Cologne / Dusseldorf etc.). The real Autobahn is only far outside the urban area where there is no local transit whatsoever

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#875

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It does not require manufacturers to pre-install them, and it does not use the electronics built into the car. It sounds analogous to the breathalyzer devices that are an option for judges in some jurisdictions. There's already a law on the books requiring breathalyzers in all new cars by next year: https://live959.com/law-mandates-mass-cars-to-have-breathaly... Presumably, anti-speeding tech will be made mandatory…

Wait -- I have to pay for a breathalizer in my new vehicle because other people can't follow the law? That's BS. I don't drink alcohol and I hate everything about this.

> I have to pay for a breathalizer in my new vehicle because other people can't follow the law? That's BS.

Not to be too pedantic, but this is the nature of most taxes and regulation. It's part of living in a society.

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#876

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hope you don't wonder why civil asset forfeiture persists. It's like you're laying one brick on the road to hell. Multiply by everyone else and their pet issues and the whole damn thing gets paved. What even is the point of principals if you don't stand by them?

> Multiply by everyone else and their pet issues and the whole damn thing gets paved. Slippery slope fallacy. Why don't you refute the central point of what I suggested?

You don't have to have civil asset forfeiture to impound the car.

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#877
post #472

Why are typical passenger vehicles even sold with the ability to go so fast? Or perhaps more pertinently, why aren't any typical passenger vehicles I've ever heard of sold without the ability to go so fast? I think the overwhelming majority (like 90%+) of people would happily buy a car that couldn't go more than 100mph. Many who only rarely leave their cities and would be happy to use alternate transportation if they…

Most vehicles are mechanically capable of going that fast because thats how fast cars can go when they are given the amount of power that consumers want when accelerating to pass or merge.

Most vehicles do have software speed limiters, which are typically set to the safe mechanical limits of the vehicle when manufactured (often, the speed rating of the tires).

The reason software speed limiters are not set to the highway speed limits in the US is because:

1. They might be used in places other than on highways subject to US law

2. Laws change

3. Manufacturers are not required to

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#878

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is this a California or Texas thing or something? The hyperbole in this thread is wild to see.

Texas checking in here - yes, it's Texas, and no, it's not hyperbole. Don't know what rinky dink town you're from, but here most roads are 6-8 lanes across. Yes, that includes in our small cities. They're essentially highways but with signal lights. Go to Arlington, Grand Prairie, Richardson, Fort Worth, Roanoke, Southlake, you name it, and it's just roads after roads like this. Trying to cross them is extremely dang…

Another Texas resident, confirming yes this is largely the experience for a lot of Texas. But its not just Texas; I've seen the same in Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri, and other places. Practically every neighborhood development since the 1980s is probably like this.

You'll have smaller streets inside of neighborhoods which are islands of nothing but houses, then massive busy streets in between. Sidewalks directly abutting these very busy streets, if even there. Usually no bike lanes.

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#879

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Driving scooters to work is impossible in many places due to distance or weather. People do this all over the world. Maybe some folks need to take a moment to deal with a little discomfort. Or better yet, build out infrastructure so people have better options.

> Maybe some folks need to take a moment to deal with a little discomfort. Your scooter wouldn’t even clear the snow here, let alone stay upright on the ice. I think some folks need to realize the world is a big place that doesn’t always look like their local area.

I rode my bike to work every day for 4 years in the Yukon. -40 and big snow banks were just part of the fun.

It’s always possible.

Re: Virginia passes law to enforce maximum vehicle speeds for repeat speeders

#880

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wait -- I have to pay for a breathalizer in my new vehicle because other people can't follow the law? That's BS. I don't drink alcohol and I hate everything about this.

Uninsured/underinsured motorist insurance are literally line items on my car insurance bill.

Those were on my late wife's bill too.

After she got hit, ultimately leading to her death in time, by an uninsured guy we had to get a lawyer and fight Eire Insurance for three years for them to honor that line on the bill.

Post reply on HN