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from the 'hit-the-road'-but-don't-take-it-literally dept.
ScienceNews reports on a report from the CDC (informative graph):
U.S. drivers love to hit the road. The problem is doing so safely.
In 2013, 32,894 people in the United States died in motor vehicle crashes. Although down since 2000, the overall death rate - 10.3 per 100,000 people - tops 19 other high-income countries, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported July 8. Belgium is a distant second with 6.5 deaths per 100,000. Researchers reviewed World Health Organization and other data on vehicle crash deaths, seat belt use and alcohol-impaired driving in 2000 and 2013.
Canada had the highest percentage of fatal crashes caused by drunk drivers: 33.6 percent. New Zealand and the United States tied for second at 31 percent. But Canada and 16 other countries outperformed the United States on seat belt use - even though, in 2013, 87 percent of people in the United States reported wearing safety belts while riding in the front seat.
Spain saw the biggest drop - 75 percent - in its crash death rate. That country improved nearly all aspects of road safety, including decreasing alcohol-impaired driving and increasing seat belt use, the researchers say.
(Score: 2) by mendax on Saturday July 23 2016, @10:34PM
Anyone who has driven interstates in Illinois recently knows how pathetic the roads are in that state.
Another problem I feel with highway safety is the fact that there are truck speed limits on rural highways. Trucks should be allowed to cruise along as fast as everyone else. Nothing pisses me off more than a truck trying to pass another truck at 60 mph, the truck speed limit being 55 mph, while everyone else is trying to fly along at 80+ mph, while the auto speed limit is 70 mph.
It's really quite a simple choice: Life, Death, or Los Angeles.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Francis on Saturday July 23 2016, @11:08PM
That might piss you off, but truck have different handling characteristics than cars do. It takes them a lot longer to stop and they can't corner as tightly as smaller vehicles do.
It's dangerous enough riding with large trucks, but do you really want to make them that much less safe by adding additional inertia they have to overcome whenever they brake? Even a 10mph difference in speed results in a huge difference in terms of reaction time, distance to stop and turning radius.
(Score: 2) by mendax on Sunday July 24 2016, @12:41AM
Once you get away from California, Oregon, or Washington, there is no separate speed limit. It's 75 mph in Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico, and 80 mph on long stretches of interstate in Utah, Texas, and Wyoming. I-5 in the California central valley is straight as an arrow. Yes, trucks do have different handling characteristics (I have a CDL license I've just never used), and in some circumstances higher speed limits would be a problem, but not in the middle of nowhere. In anything, it would make the drive safer for everyone else by reducing the traffic congestion caused by slower trucks trying to pass even slower trucks.
It's really quite a simple choice: Life, Death, or Los Angeles.
(Score: 2) by Pslytely Psycho on Sunday July 24 2016, @12:32PM
Yeah, the biggest problem with that is most major fleets speed limit their trucks to between 62 and 65 mph. So you end up with a 63 mph truck trying to pass a 62 mph truck in 70 mph traffic.
And then they come to a hill......
When I was a driver I tried to avoid the slow motion pass until the freeway was clear enough to pass with a minimum of inconvenience to other drivers. I also taught my students to do this. It's safer for me, it's safer for all. Unfortunately there are far too many drivers who pass irregardless of traffic. If you're an Owner Operator that has an unrestricted truck, it's not such a big deal. But where the difference in speed with corporate trucks may only be as little as a single mile per hour, and you don't give a fuck, well, it creates problems and safety hazards for all around you.
A majority of commercial drivers drive well, with courtesy and respect. The assholes are who we are remembered by....
Alex Jones lawyer inspires new TV series: CSI Moron Division.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 23 2016, @11:34PM
Nothing pisses me off more than a truck trying to pass another truck at 60 mph, the truck speed limit being 55 mph, while I'm trying to fly along at 80+ mph, while the auto speed limit is 70 mph, and my car's autopilot can't distinguish the two trucks from the sky because they're both painted white, and I die horribly.
(Score: 3, Funny) by Runaway1956 on Sunday July 24 2016, @02:06PM
I don't much care about the "horribly" part - just please die quietly.
I actually think you were going for a "funny" mod, but someone has already taken you seriously with an "informative" mod.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Sunday July 24 2016, @02:03PM
The state of Arizona was considering split speed limits, some years ago, in response to an increase in traffic fatalities near Phoenix. They commissioned the Arizona University to do a study, and let them know how many lives would be changed.
The University came back in due time, and flat out told the legislators that split speed limits COST LIVES - it doesn't save any lives. Those bunch of kids figured out that each and every passing maneuver involves a risk of collision. The idea is to reduce passing maneuvers, thereby decreasing risk. All traffic needs to flow within about ten mph of all other traffic on high speed highways.
But, the courts are far more interested in revenue than they are in safety, so they mindlessly lobby for split speed limits, then send the cops out to enforce those laws.