Over cappuccinos, My friend Vanessa told me she thought speed limits were a stupid and outdated idea.
"Easy for you to say," I told her. "You drive a Porsche."
"Yeah, but until two years ago, all I drove were minivans. I felt that way then."
"So you think people should be able to drive as fast as they want?"
"Nope."
"Well, what then?"
"Here's the thing," she said. "I drive Highway XX almost every day. The posted one-size-fits-all speed limit is 55. But when I'm in my Carrera on a clear day with a dry road, and I'm alert and paying attention, I can safely go at least 70. On the other hand, if it's dark and raining and I'm driving the Caravan and the kids are fighting in the back seat, something under 50 is probably the safe limit. The posted speed is, frankly, irrelevant to safety."
"So what happens if someone drives too fast, and causes a crash?"
"Well, reckless driving is still illegal. Crash investigators can tell if speed is a factor. Don't get me wrong--I'm not arguing that people shouldn't be accountable for their driving behavior."
"So the speed limit should just be a suggestion?"
"Yeah. Matter of fact, I find the yellow advisory speed signs much more useful. When I see one that says 25, I slow down, even in the Carrera. Of course, when I'm in it and paying attention, I can add 20mph to the warning speed. In the minivan, not as much. But we have the technology now to replace speed limits with something better."
"Like what?"
"Cars that nag. The new cars are already smart enough to know when we're too close to the car in front, or when we're weaving out of our lane. The car certainly knows its own capability, and it can monitor the driver's behavior, too. When the driver is going too fast for the vehicle and road conditions, it can flash a warning. Record it to a black box, too, in case there's a crash."
"Hmm. How will it know if you're busy texting or putting on makeup?"
"Simple. Just add a camera that faces the driver."
"And you would take that trade-off? A nagging car versus an arbitrary speed limit?"
"Sure. If you think about it, speed limits are a crazy idea. Even the traffic engineers admit they set them based on the speed that 85% of the drivers go anyway. Who's to say the other 15% are driving too fast to be safe?"
I sipped my drink and thought about it.
"I don't know" I said.
"Well, if you think speed limits make so much sense," she said, "why isn't there a law that all shoes should be sold in only one size? It would make shoes much cheaper, and save a lot of shelf space in stores."
"You've got a point there," I said.
"Yeah, and in Montana all the shoes would be size 14, and in Oregon, they would all be size 8."
