Nanny state

[Bjay]

Just found out today that one of our local roads which goes for around 20 ks is being dropped to a speed limit of 80 for the whole section. WTF man can't get my head around the fing stupid decisions that some of our gov departments make in the name of so called safety. There gunna spend untold amounts of money on sighnage apparently and yet the surface is a disgrace but obviously cheaper thAn actually fixing the road. What ever happened to people being responsible for themselves? We can't regulate everything to try and protect the stupid from themselves but our so called leaders keep trying to. Does my head in sometimes. Sorry rant over just needed to get it off my chest. Feel way better now

 

[RM Outback]

Too much knowledge from so called studies and not enough coal face intelligence imo, no disrespect to emergency services personal, I've been there more than once. Bjay you nailed it with regards to regulating the stupid from them selves, somehow I doubt any common sense from decent road users will change their minds.

An interesting fact regarding fatalities on our roads is they happen within 5km of the person's address, approximately 80% of the time from memory. Once I became aware of this fact it made me change some habits. Habits being the main reason for allowing ourselves to be distracted on so called familiar roads, not that it determines who's at fault. Non the less an interesting fact.

 

[Mickkat12]

So that will equate to 3 mins longer beats a trip to the morgue

 

[Bjay]

Totally agree , most of my In laws are inthe fire brigade and attend accidents all the time and there just as stunned about the decision as I am. Speed limits on back roads don't save lives its attitudes, education and being aware of conditions that do. My young blokes just starting to drive on his ls. Yeah scares the **** out of me knowing that in couple of years he'll be driving by himself but all I can do is teach him the best I can. One of best things young drivers should be taught is being aware of your surroundings and looking in the future ( look down the road to see what's coming up) before you get to it. Can't believe how many road users just don't know what's going in around them.followed a young girl on the highway going over detecting this weekend that was on her phone all over the road . **** I just wanted to stop her and slap her about. Maybee I should have and got in the **** for it but may have saved her or someone else's life one day. What do ya do?

 

[Bjay]

So that will equate to 3 mins longer beats a trip to the morgue

Sure does but my point is if you have a stated speed limit do you do it or do you drive to the road your on . That's the point I was trying to get across, people need to be responsible for there own actions not relying on others to tell them what to do

 

[Mickkat12]

You can't save the world , it's beyond repair .... worry about your own crew
The powers to be are the powers to be

 

[Heatho]

We've got better handling and braking cars than ever, better safety equipment such as airbags. Pretty much just revenue raising doing stuff like that. It's happening everywhere.

 

[Mickkat12]

We've got better handling and braking cars than ever, better safety equipment such as airbags. Pretty much just revenue raising doing stuff like that. It's happening everywhere.

Cash is king heatho

 

[Bjay]

I truly believe that they think its cheaper to lower the limit than fix the road surface. Seen it in a lot of places that used to fine and the road turns to **** so hey let's just lower the limit.
Thing that gets me is I live on a true country road. The one I mentioned is between two reasonable size towns. My road and many thousand others don't have stated limits so its 100 but we don't do that on every part of the road we use common sense and make our own decisions . We don't need some snotty nosed employee probly living in the city to make that choice for us.

 

[RM Outback]

We've got better handling and braking cars than ever, better safety equipment such as airbags. Pretty much just revenue raising doing stuff like that. It's happening everywhere.

Cash is king heatho

Cash is king, pwttt. No need or sense for cash to be king when it comes down to a person's life, that's just complete and utter crap in my book.

 

[Mickkat12]

We're known as pond scum mate just a testing ground

 

[Bjay]

We've got better handling and braking cars than ever, better safety equipment such as airbags. Pretty much just revenue raising doing stuff like that. It's happening everywhere.

Not sure if its revenue raising in this case as I don't think there's even a place for a camera more just over regulation . Had work safe come through us a while ago and all fixed ladders ( to cranes ect) had to be locked out . Asked why and was told so no one who's not authorized can climb up them! Go figure. I f someone wants to climb the ladder to the crane and shouldn't be well that's Darwin's theory in my eyes.

 

[RM Outback]

I truly believe that they think its cheaper to lower the limit than fix the road surface. Seen it in a lot of places that used to fine and the road turns to ***** so hey let's just lower the limit.
Thing that gets me is I live on a true country road. The one I mentioned is between two reasonable size towns. My road and many thousand others don't have stated limits so its 100 but we don't do that on every part of the road we use common sense and make our own decisions . We don't need some snotty nosed employee probly living in the city to make that choice for us.

Maybe a newly elected councillor has some holding in the neighbourhood and wants to feel they've made an impact. Locals who respect their environment understand it better than bureaucrats but somehow brain dead bureaucrats have the final say without consultation. Same as it is with prospecting. Not that all prospectors are locals close to it though in the sense without prospectors some towns wouldn't exist. That said without bureaucrats we'd all get along :lol:

 

[Davent]

From what ive seen, when speed limits are dropped, accidents INCREASE, reason, people are used to driving at 100 + on a road thats been 100+ for years, suddenly its dropped to 80. Then the cautous drive at 70, people then take risks to overtake. We have had more deaths up here since the speed limit was dropped to 130. I usually cruise on 140. I drove from Tennant creek to darwin earlier this year, left TC at 2pm, caravaners are usually stopping to set up by 2-4pm, I didnt have one car in front of me from TC to Katherine, not 1. Thats 700km. Imagine that at 100kmph.....mind numbing. Going north early, however, is rediculous in the dry season, the migration of caravans is just dangerous, they sit on 80 in a 130 zone, and in bloody convoys of 3 or 4 at a time. They cause most accidents on the NT roads in the dry season. People just want overtake them to get where they are going, but vanners have all the time in the world, and sit on 80 to save on fuel costs. Bloody frustrating! (Sorry caravaners!)

 

[Bjay]

Well the sun came up this morning so alls good . I guess my thoughts won't make a difference so just got to accept it and move on

 

[Gem in I]

We've got better handling and braking cars than ever, better safety equipment such as airbags. Pretty much just revenue raising doing stuff like that. It's happening everywhere.

I agree with this however not many comments about the roads. Almost all safety features are with city commuting in mind and what a lot of us haven't thought about is in aus most of our roads today were born from horse and cart then tar on top. I remember the HQ from the 70's would make you feel the inertia because of suspension and sway so you learnt quite quickly what the car could take and usually less speed to compensate. Todays car is built better than the lounge room giving a false sense of security and speed. A lot of new drivers do not know what it feels like to lose control till fatality happens so I would recommend safety driver training (because hooning in an industrial area is frowned upon) and I think a lot of mobile phones wont be used so often.

Oh yea and I also think the local officer has just found a boring way to make the powers that be a little bit richer of course in the name of safety.

 

[Heatho]

We've got better handling and braking cars than ever, better safety equipment such as airbags. Pretty much just revenue raising doing stuff like that. It's happening everywhere.

Not sure if its revenue raising in this case as I don't think there's even a place for a camera more just over regulation . Had work safe come through us a while ago and all fixed ladders ( to cranes ect) had to be locked out . Asked why and was told so no one who's not authorized can climb up them! Go figure. I f someone wants to climb the ladder to the crane and shouldn't be well that's Darwin's theory in my eyes.

Same thing happened near my parents place, they dropped an 80 zone down to 60, now guess where Mr Highway Patrol likes to hang out. Always people coming into their grog shop complaining about being booked on that stretch, including my mum, they nabbed her for a decent fine a few months back....

 

[Tathradj]

Have a notorious corner on the Bega to Tathra Road.
Many people have come to grief on it including a very sad fatality.
Corner looks like a normal sweeping bend but is cambered wrong.
First thing that the powers that be did, Sign post it. No Go.
Second, Lower the speed limit, No Good.
Third, Fix the bloody road properly.
Just in time for Christmas.

 

[BoydWilliam]

130kmph on boring barren roads in the outback might be okay. When you fall off the road there isn't much to hit. Maybe a sand dune, some dust or dirt.
100 kmph in other places might be okay if there weren't trees to smash into when you fall off the road.
We don't have good roads, a lot of country surfaces are $hit littered with potholes, bitumen bleed and the like.
A lot of country drivers get very complacent which can lead to problems.
Lowering the speed limit won't kill anyone as long as people obey the speed limit.
I know what I'm talking about. I've attended dozens and dozens of collisions in my line of work. I've seen it all. Multiple fatalities, dead kids smashed up beyond recognition, limbs sliced off, blood and guts smeared all over the place, hysterical parents and partners who have survived the impact to be confronted with a headless partner or child in the passenger seat.
It's not nice to think about what I've just typed and even worse to experience it especially if it's your family involved.
If the speed limit gets lowered its for a reason, not for bull$hit revenue as Heatho mentioned.
Our roads aren't safe, safety barriers aren't always there as they are overseas.
If the speed limit is lowered and it saves one life it's worth it.

 

[Davent]

Can't agree Boyd. It is about revenue, and to be seen to be doing something. Your pre cocieved ideas about the NT being desert roads is just way off the mark to.
As for road maintanence, the NT has a total population of about 260,000, and manage to maintain our roads pretty well. Think Victoria. Bit smaller than the NT has population of 4 or 5 million, and the state govt raise revenue from anywhere they can.
For example, we don't have boat,rego, boat licences or fishing licences either.