German autobahn sees first, gulp, speed limits
Just like NASCAR legend Ricky Bobby, Germans wanna go fast. Since the introduction of the autobahn, it's been an unwritten law that German drivers have the right to drive as fast as they like. Now, in the northern state of Bremen, that unwritten law is being overturned for the first time by posted speed limits of 120kph (75mph). Greens all over the nation are claiming this as a victory for the environment and they're pushing for similar measures to be put in place all over Germany.Environmentalists claim that placing speed limits of 80mph on the autobahn will cut vehicle emissions by 5% immediately and by 15% over the long term. 80mph seems pretty reasonable, right? Germany is a very green-minded nation, leading the world in renewable energy. Still, are Germans ready to give up their love affair with fast cars?
It's not likely to happen in the near future, since Chancellor Angela Merkel and her party have vowed to fight the speed limits. Despite the environmental concerns, I'd hate to see the fun end for the fast driving Germans and their autobahn, but it's bound to happen sooner or later. To citizens of Bremen, speed limits are already a reality.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-10-2008 @ 2:06AM
Aaron Martin-Colby said...
This isn't even too little, too late. It's totally un-needed. The Tesla electric sports car, even if it's not amazing itself, is undoubtedly the bellwether to a growing market for fast, non-petrol cars. Yet this law would apply to all vehicles.
Many performance cars, such as Porsche, can achieve high speeds with little gas usage and low emissions. The Corvette can travel in 6th gear at 80mph while still achieving 30mpg.
People will likely ignore this limit. The speed limit in my neck of the woods, Rhode Island, is 55mph. My afternoon drives have seen nearly 90mph while only just passing traffic. And at most times, it's not the speed limit that restricts my speed, it's other cars, which is the case on many stretches of the ever-more-crowded autobahn.
The data frequently used to support these sorts or regulations is dodgey. They extrapolate, estimate, and guess a large number of their variables.
I'm all for government attention to the environment, but laws rarely help, especially when the law could become an anachronism in less than a decade. And as we know full well, once a law is in place it's damned hard to get rid of it, anachronism or not.
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4-10-2008 @ 8:03AM
Karsten said...
What are you talking about???? There have been speed limits on the Autobahn for decades!
Just not everywhere. There are parts of the Autobahn where there are no speed limit, that is the only difference. There are permanent signs, there are signs that adjust the speed depending on traffic density, there are limitations all over the place in Germany.
The new thing is that one state declared a speed limit for all of ITS Autobahn. The recommended speed has been 130 km/h for decades everywhere.
Karsten
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http://www.polluteless.com
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4-10-2008 @ 9:54AM
D said...
bullcrap - there are already plenty of speedlimits on German roads (yes, even on the Autobahn), and some even restrict us to going only 100km/h. Go check it out!
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4-10-2008 @ 10:00AM
Josh Loposer said...
Really? That's kinda disappointing. I had a romanticized view of the autobahn as a lawless racetrack.
4-10-2008 @ 3:34PM
Karsten said...
Well, some people consider it a lawless racetrack and behave accordingly. I prefer driving in the USA any day. Less stress at least in the areas I have traveled. Going 130 mph is not fun when someone does something stupid or does not know you are going that fast. There are occasionally spectacular (and deadly) collisions, especially in the fog. On the other hand 100 mph cruising is OK for hours as long as there are three lanes, the weather is right, and people respect the left lanes for faster traffic.
None of this is any good for the environment. Any time you double our speed you quadruple your wind resistance. There is more than twice as much wind resistance when going 75 mph than going 50 mph. It has a BIG impact on fuel economy.
I am glad to see that more Germans do not consider driving reasonably an act of leaving their "testicles" behind. Some people do grow up! In the USA it is the right to own guns - in Germany the Autobahn without speed limit.
Karsten
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http://www.polluteless.com