Thought there might be some interest in the following extract from the Greens manifesto :-
Reduce speed limits (e.g. to 20mph in built-up areas, including villages). Introduce a maximum speed limit of 55mph on motorways and trunk roads, and 40mph on rural roads, to make them safer for all road users. Prioritise public transport, then if necessary work towards the introduction of road pricing schemes like the London congestion charge.
I admit I was surprised by the 55mph proposal.
Andy C
Google "green fascism"
They would make 55mph apply to emergency vehicles as well, I guess.
I don't necessarily agree with their policies, but they have done a huge amount to make people more aware of green issues.
55mph = a lot less fuel than 70mph. Surely, we should leave a little bit of oil over for future generations? Or is it ok that we squander it all and they have to walk?
But the journey takes longer, so /more/ fuel could be used...
As far as I can see, their impact is largely negative as they have made the average person associate green issues with weirdos.
No it isn't.
If you really want to save fuel, encourage folk to not drive at all where possible.
For reasons of cost saving, I drive about 20% less miles per year than I ordinarily would, with pretty much zero impact on my quality of life.
If "we" cared about future generations (and I sincerely doubt that many people do), we should be putting more effort into alternative personal transport strategies.
Chris
The biggest cause of increased pollution and increased cost of resources, is the tripling of the world's population in 50 -60 years. Saving a bit of oil is going to make hardly any difference. As the world has a finite capacity, it would better to attempt to curb the birthrate rather than restrict the standard of living of the already worst off, by increased taxation, which appears to be the only strategy on offer.
Andy C
And some vehicles are not that much worse at 70mph than 50mph. I don't worry so much caning my diesel as much as I did when doing the same with petrol getting up to cruising speed.
In the long term, there are other solutions to powering transport other than oil, and the issue is being thought about now by a lot of people. Not just greens, but realists.
I guess that even a 10% saving would be considered a lot on this issue.
Surely that'd be a knock-on effect of the 55mph speed limit, especially if it's rigidly enough enforced for huge numbers of people to lose their licences.
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember Andy Cap saying something like:
That's as fast as a bicycle will go.
The DOT used to have a model which said that the number of people making a journey was inversely proportional to the journey time. This was many years ago, when I did a gap year and nearly worked for them.
In message , Grimly Curmudgeon writes
No it isn't!
8-)
Pfff! A mere 81mph! How about a pedal-powered 208mph on two wheels?
Chris
I remember a record of 109mph being set by a cyclist many years ago, but I can't remember whether it was motor-paced...
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