I have lived in places where the speed limit is very obviously around 10 mph too low for the road’s engineering and surrounding environment, consistently. Consequently, there is truly no one during busy times doing the speed limit.
This gives police the ability to pull over anyone, at their discretion, with direct legal cause (not even the “immune from consequences in practice” kind). Even driving the speed limit creates a hazard and merits intervention according to the law.
The place I’m describing was very racist, driving while black was absolutely unofficially illegal, and this lets cops pick and choose in all the worst ways.
Be deeply suspicious of any law that is routinely broken by everyone for years with no change - it is to allow arbitrary, bigoted enforcement.
It’s a real thing, road design has an inherent “natural speed” where most drivers feel comfortable, not too quick, not too slow. In the Netherlands if you get a speeding ticket there is a chance that you can successfully argue in court that the road design invited you to drive faster and get the fine annuled. When that happens the government will ask the company responsible for that bit of road to add traffic calming measures like bumps, or obstacles you have to go around that slow you down. Highways are an exception though.
As an addon, those private companies responsible for the roads have to abide by certain design philosophies made by the government, and they are legally responsible for the safety of the roads, if someone dies and it’s found to be due to the road design, or its state of maintenance for example, they can be charged massive sums of money.
Most drivers with experience can tell by how a road is constructed (materials, bank angles on curves, etc.) roughly how fast they can safely go, and there’s a subconscious mental tug to get up to that speed. Whether you personally are impacted by that or not, it’s a well-known phenomena.
When everyone on the road, most far less thoughtful than yourself, are experiencing that mental tug, traffic moves naturally faster than the posted speed. And then that gives probable cause for our racist police to pick and choose who to fuck up.
I have lived in places where the speed limit is very obviously around 10 mph too low for the road’s engineering and surrounding environment, consistently. Consequently, there is truly no one during busy times doing the speed limit.
This gives police the ability to pull over anyone, at their discretion, with direct legal cause (not even the “immune from consequences in practice” kind). Even driving the speed limit creates a hazard and merits intervention according to the law.
The place I’m describing was very racist, driving while black was absolutely unofficially illegal, and this lets cops pick and choose in all the worst ways.
Be deeply suspicious of any law that is routinely broken by everyone for years with no change - it is to allow arbitrary, bigoted enforcement.
How does that work? Like, even on the broadest highway I could drive 5 mph without my car or the highway taking damage from it?!
It’s a real thing, road design has an inherent “natural speed” where most drivers feel comfortable, not too quick, not too slow. In the Netherlands if you get a speeding ticket there is a chance that you can successfully argue in court that the road design invited you to drive faster and get the fine annuled. When that happens the government will ask the company responsible for that bit of road to add traffic calming measures like bumps, or obstacles you have to go around that slow you down. Highways are an exception though.
As an addon, those private companies responsible for the roads have to abide by certain design philosophies made by the government, and they are legally responsible for the safety of the roads, if someone dies and it’s found to be due to the road design, or its state of maintenance for example, they can be charged massive sums of money.
Most drivers with experience can tell by how a road is constructed (materials, bank angles on curves, etc.) roughly how fast they can safely go, and there’s a subconscious mental tug to get up to that speed. Whether you personally are impacted by that or not, it’s a well-known phenomena.
When everyone on the road, most far less thoughtful than yourself, are experiencing that mental tug, traffic moves naturally faster than the posted speed. And then that gives probable cause for our racist police to pick and choose who to fuck up.