GMTV did a skit on the problems of speeding drivers. The organisation, Brake , which conducted the research says via the article:
- Almost three quarters (72%) drivers surveyed by the road safety charity and motor insurer admitted driving at 35mph or faster in a 30mph zone.
- Half of these offenders (36%) admitted doing this daily or at least once a week.
I was on a Pass Plus session with someone last week, and we were on the M1 heading towards Leicester Forest East Services at about 8.30pm. She commented on how many people were going faster than us, which prompted me to switch on my camera. You need to bear in mind that we were doing a steady 70mph (and before anyone says it, yes, we seemed to stay in the middle lane for quite a long time – that was because someone was hanging just behind us on the nearside AND she’d never been on a motorway before, so I was explaining how to make sure it was safe to move over, IF you should, and WHEN). This video covers a four-minute section of the drive.
[flv:/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/m1_may_9.flv 480 360]
Just look how many people go past us, and at what speed (again, I emphasise that we were doing a steady 70mph). It was like this all the way down, and all the way back.
On normal lessons, virtually no one adheres to the speed limit. Some are just idiots, others are dangerously bad drivers – my pet hate is the older driver who drives just a little bit faster than you when it is a lower speed limit (i.e. is speeding in a 50mph zone), pulls in just in front, then continues at that same speed (so slows you down) when the limit increases to 70mph. They just like to drive at 35mph on urban roads, 45mph on wider roads, and 55mph on big roads… irrespective of the limit that’s set.