Will the UK's speed limit be raised at some point?
Apart from the millions extracted from drivers in speeding fines, what justification is there for the 70mph speed limit on motorways? It was imposed as a "temporary measure" 55 years ago next month. Cars now handle better, stop faster, have more safety equipment, have better visibility and grip the road better than they did then, so why not 80mph at least?
Asked on 3 November 2020 by maxsaw
Answered by
Andrew Brady
There have been a number of calls to increase the motorway speed limit over the years. But it's unlikely to happen for environmental reasons - it's been estimated that increasing the limit to 80mph could generate an extra 2.2 million tonnes of CO2 a year. It'd be bad for noise pollution, too - cars travelling at higher speed make more noise, which would mean increased speed limits would trigger complaints from anyone living near a motorway.
Tags:
speed limits
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