Why don't speed limits make any sense?

Question

I can legally drive 75 MPH and illegally get away with 85 MPH in the Colorado Rockies, the Sierras, the desert southwest, the Appalachians, the Oklahoma prairie, through rain, wind, and snow.

But when I get to Kansas, and all I see is a perfectly straight horizon, and the closest car is never closer than a mile away, I get pulled over for going 72. Twice. In an hour.

Why? Why is such a god-forsaken, long, boring, open-air state so strict about their already low speed limit?

Answer 1

Speed limits were set at one point, using the 85th percentile rule. A new road would open with no posted limit and the speeds of the drivers were recorded. They would then set the speed limit based on the speed that 85% of the drivers did not exceed. A normal driver will not drive faster than the road conditions allow safely!

In 1974 there was an oil embargo, and the federal government as an "energy saving" program required that speed limits be set at 50 MPH or less (this was later raised to 55 MPH) This created unforeseen situations.

Speeding had been considered a bad thing by the majority of the public, because speed limits were based on safety. Now a road that was safe at 70 MPH was limited to 55 MPH. Respect for the law declined, as people drove at speeds they considered safe. CB radios and Radar detectors became popular, as people used them to avoid the enforcement of an unpopular rule!

In Kansas, they have a lower speed limit, and they aggressively enforce it on cars with out of state tags. This is a source of revenue, and as long as the drivers who are paying are not Kansas voters, they do not have any political pressure to change! It has nothing to do with safety, it has to do with increasing revenue!

Answer 2

Speed limits were imposed on the Interstates in the 50's and 60's according to what the cars could handle at the time. Then, during the 70's oil crises, the speed limits were lowered to save on gas, which gave the US an unforseen bonus, less vehicle accidents. Since then, it has been difficult to raise the speed limit in some areas. Remember that the insurance companies lobby governments too, so it is in their best interest to try and keep the speed limits lower.

Answer 3

honestly, sure, and also you gave the reason. because drivers bypass quicker than the speed reduce, p.c. limits indicators want to be printed with decrease speeds that drivers could bypass, in order that that they are going to bypass a danger-free p.c.. for example, if the fastest danger-free p.c. is 70 mph and drivers bypass 10 mph quicker than the indicators say, then the indicators want to assert 60 mph, to keep the drivers from going quicker than 70 mph. even as p.c. limits are raised, in spite of if the recent reduce is less than the speed that drivers used to bypass, the coincidence cost does develop. without the low reduce, theycontinual even quicker than they drove with it. for example, if someone drove sixty 5 mph even as the reduce replaced into fifty 5 mph, then they mightcontinual seventy 5 mph and not using a fifty 5 mph reduce.

Answer 4

It makes little sense except that maybe the speed limits are set up so people get tickets (because the fee you pay goes towards the county you were pulled over in)

Answer 5

Your guess is as good as mine.
It's still 55 mph in Pennsylvania.
Talk about boring.

Answer 6

They're incredibly bored, and one way to overcome the boredom is to become a police man and catch the bad boy speeders. That's their excitement. You didn't notice the nearest neighbors getting onto their porches and eating popcorn?

Answer 7

They do it for the money. Has nothing to do with safety.