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From: rgrove@pogo.UUCP
Newsgroups: misc.legal,net.auto
Subject: Re: Nation speed limit increase
Message-ID: <2822@pogo.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 14-Oct-86 23:19:50 EDT
Article-I.D.: pogo.2822
Posted: Tue Oct 14 23:19:50 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 15-Oct-86 20:16:37 EDT
References: <35@ritcv.UUCP> <43@ritcv.UUCP> <634@mecc.UUCP> <418@fai.UUCP>
Reply-To: rgrove@pogo.UUCP (Robert Grove)
Distribution: net
Organization: Tektronix, Inc., Wilsonville, OR.
Lines: 32
Xref: mnetor misc.legal:1 net.auto:7080

In article <418@fai.UUCP> ronc@fai.UUCP (Ronald O. Christian) writes:
[Raising speed limit discussion deleted]
>
>I can't argue against making our streets safer, but I object to blanket
>'easy' answers that don't look at the real situation.  Time to dump
>the double nickel and try something else.
>
>
>				Ron

I couldn't agree with you more Ron.  After all if the arguement for keeping
55 is "it saves lives compared to 65 -70" then the same logic could be
carried to its extreme. That is: If 55 saves more lives than 70, then 30 would
save more lives than 55; we could save all lives by making the speed limit
zero.  The point that I think that several people have been making is that
a logical approach is to weigh the risks against the benefits. Since I haven't
seen anybody advocating that we outlaw driving completely, I assume that most
people are willing to accept some risk for the benefit of traveling by car.
If this is indeed true, we should should set speed limits at a level such that
the benefits and risks are balanced.  I am certainly willing to trade the
increased risk of a 70 mph speed limit for the faster travel.  I think that
many, if not most people, would also provided the road is designed for it.  
There are some people who probably feel that 25 or 30 is the speed limit that 
best suits the risk they are willing to take. I hope that they do not 
represent a strong enough influence to have the speed limit lowered.  I also
believe that any law that is violated by a majority of people is a bad law
and, as the 55 MPH speed limit is broken regularly by what I believe is well
over 50% of the drivers on the road, well as you said, "Time to dump the
double nickel and try something else."

Robert Grove
!tektronix!pogo!rgrove