Seems rather obvious: some people are always assholes, some people become assholes once they drive a car. We all know this, we have all seen it. And everybody things they are betten than they are – kind of the story of humanity.
But speeding is a weird one. I can’t imagine any other area where everybody tries to “break the law just a bit”. I mean, do people try to underpay their taxes by 10%, just enough to get away with?
But speeding is the one area of the law where it is considered normal to break it, and then you are considered “stupid” if you get caught.
>Something peculiar happens when people in car-centric societies think about driving, Walker says. He points to safety campaigns encouraging children to wear bright clothing so they’re seen on the roads. In Walker’s opinion, these could be interpreted as teaching children that it’s their own fault if they get run over, for not dressing in a way that suits drivers.
Walkers opinion on this is daft, we enforce it for anyone working on or near roads in the form of high-vis and reflective clothing, cyclists are encouraged to make themselves as visible as possible, etc. To interpret that as we’re teaching children as “it’s their own fault” seems really disconnected from reality.
>In one study of over 2,150 adults in the UK, Walker and his coauthors found that people were more likely to agree with statements that were critical of activities such as smoking than driving, though both contribute to air pollution in cities.
74,600 smoking releated deaths in 2019 in England alone.
1,752 for GB in the same year on the roads. It’s not hard to see why people think smoking is worse, there’s no good that comes of it and it offers no utility like driving does. No idea why they’ve commented on pollution in cities on this comparison, as it appears unlikely it would have been part of the question.
Just a bit of a strange article all round really, more to announce a new term they’ve coined than anything else.
I’d say this is more than just speeding. There are a lot of illegal activities and habits that spread because the public feels that it’s not really morally wrong and they don’t see much punishment happening.
E.g. illegal streaming and piracy. This was rampant in the days of Napster, Kazaa etc because people no longer felt the model for music was fair and they didn’t see it as a risk to being caught and punished.
This is the prevailing sense with speeding. I’m sure these drivers who think they can speed would absolutely drive 5 mph below the limit if they found themselves in an authoritarian state where they knew being caught meant very harsh penalties.
there’s a guy that drives around the estate where i live (20mph zone) at maybe 60/70, car barely under control. see him every day, absolutely no way to stop him
Right away: “A study in the US”
I know there will be some similarities, but driving in the US ***is*** going to be different. Stopped reading there, and reading a couple comments? Glad I did.
Poor journalism.
A really quick Google search says tha autobahn has 1.6 fatalities per billion km travelled. Our motorways are essentially straight bits of roads that are wide enough to speed on – particularly if your car is modern with lane assist and adapted cruise control you can happily chug along at 80 or higher and road cops dont usually bother you [at 80].
I drive a lot on the A66 and it’s painful being stuck behind some old biddy or nervous driver doing 50. The speed limit might not be a target but the A66 is a straight fucking road with minimal difficulties. If you cant drive at 60+ you create unsafe situations with people regularly overtaking you. Dangerous driving includes driving too slow as well, not just speeding.
My otherwise normal sister becomes a foul-mouthed road rager in a car
7 comments
Seems rather obvious: some people are always assholes, some people become assholes once they drive a car. We all know this, we have all seen it. And everybody things they are betten than they are – kind of the story of humanity.
But speeding is a weird one. I can’t imagine any other area where everybody tries to “break the law just a bit”. I mean, do people try to underpay their taxes by 10%, just enough to get away with?
But speeding is the one area of the law where it is considered normal to break it, and then you are considered “stupid” if you get caught.
>Something peculiar happens when people in car-centric societies think about driving, Walker says. He points to safety campaigns encouraging children to wear bright clothing so they’re seen on the roads. In Walker’s opinion, these could be interpreted as teaching children that it’s their own fault if they get run over, for not dressing in a way that suits drivers.
Walkers opinion on this is daft, we enforce it for anyone working on or near roads in the form of high-vis and reflective clothing, cyclists are encouraged to make themselves as visible as possible, etc. To interpret that as we’re teaching children as “it’s their own fault” seems really disconnected from reality.
>In one study of over 2,150 adults in the UK, Walker and his coauthors found that people were more likely to agree with statements that were critical of activities such as smoking than driving, though both contribute to air pollution in cities.
74,600 smoking releated deaths in 2019 in England alone.
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/statistics-on-public-health/2021/part-2-mortality
1,752 for GB in the same year on the roads. It’s not hard to see why people think smoking is worse, there’s no good that comes of it and it offers no utility like driving does. No idea why they’ve commented on pollution in cities on this comparison, as it appears unlikely it would have been part of the question.
Just a bit of a strange article all round really, more to announce a new term they’ve coined than anything else.
I’d say this is more than just speeding. There are a lot of illegal activities and habits that spread because the public feels that it’s not really morally wrong and they don’t see much punishment happening.
E.g. illegal streaming and piracy. This was rampant in the days of Napster, Kazaa etc because people no longer felt the model for music was fair and they didn’t see it as a risk to being caught and punished.
This is the prevailing sense with speeding. I’m sure these drivers who think they can speed would absolutely drive 5 mph below the limit if they found themselves in an authoritarian state where they knew being caught meant very harsh penalties.
there’s a guy that drives around the estate where i live (20mph zone) at maybe 60/70, car barely under control. see him every day, absolutely no way to stop him
Right away: “A study in the US”
I know there will be some similarities, but driving in the US ***is*** going to be different. Stopped reading there, and reading a couple comments? Glad I did.
Poor journalism.
A really quick Google search says tha autobahn has 1.6 fatalities per billion km travelled. Our motorways are essentially straight bits of roads that are wide enough to speed on – particularly if your car is modern with lane assist and adapted cruise control you can happily chug along at 80 or higher and road cops dont usually bother you [at 80].
I drive a lot on the A66 and it’s painful being stuck behind some old biddy or nervous driver doing 50. The speed limit might not be a target but the A66 is a straight fucking road with minimal difficulties. If you cant drive at 60+ you create unsafe situations with people regularly overtaking you. Dangerous driving includes driving too slow as well, not just speeding.
My otherwise normal sister becomes a foul-mouthed road rager in a car