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"Driving at 147mph, late at night on a clear road is not a crime"



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Our correspondent Matt Hughes thinks the long ban imposed on a driver who was caught speeding at 147mph in the Vale was unjustified...
I used to live in Aylesbury and used the A41 on many an occasion and it is definitely a better road than many of the Autobahns that I now drive on in Germany.

As you are probably aware, much of the Autobahn is without speed limit and 147mph is a speed at which people travel, given the correct conditions in which to do so.

Taking into consideration the driver was on such a well maintained road, little traffic upon it due to the late hour, I fail to see why the ban is long.

The magistrates summing up seemed as if he failed to see what the chap had done wrong (other than breaking a rather silly law) when he said; "The speed was way above our guidelines and although it was nearly midnight, driving at that speed has got to have some danger. In spite of this, we therefore think it was a very serious case and none of us on this bench have heard of that level of speeding before."

He did not explain what danger the driver was causing and is just assuming that the driver was causing a danger and seems to hand out a sentence based upon the unproven assumption that the driver was causing a "danger".

Fortunately, my adopted country deals with these sort of matters in a more professional and principled manner, whereby if you are caught over-taking in a village or breaking the speed limits where there are any, be prepared for a hefty fine and lengthy ban in addition to points being put on your licence.

Driving at 147mph, late at night on a clear road is not a crime here and nor should it be.

Matt Hughes

Do you agree with Mr Hughes?

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Lindsay Neal responds:

I can not believe what I have just read..??

"Driving at 147mph, late at night on a clear road is not a crime" - err hello he broke the law???

Speed limits are in place in this country for a reason, this is the law and must be adhered to.

147MPH is way over the speed limit if I am correct he should have been driving no faster than 70MPH - how can you even condone that 147MPH is ok.... if he is driving like this at midnight I would suggest that he would be the sort of person to ignore speed limits during the day also -being 'chased' or not.

Whether it is legal in Germany has no relevance - its not in England.

To be honest it wouldn't surprise me if he asked you to write this article... sounds like a complete numpty and I think he should have got a longer ban :o)



The full article contains 515 words and appears in n/a newspaper.
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  • Last Updated: 20 March 2008 3:40 PM
  • Source: n/a
  • Location: Aylesbury
 
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Steve P,

Aylesbury 20/03/2008 17:38:04
I agree with the first bloke, the speed limits need to be addressed they are out of date, for goodness sake my car has something called "BRAKE ASSIST" and will apply harder braking pressure for you in the event of the car detecting that you need it.
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SpeedKills,

Aylesbury 25/03/2008 14:28:12
The ban is long because he was caught doing over twice the speed limit (70mph). The judge does not need to jusify the length of ban either - he was caught at double the limit!

It matters not what the limits are in Germany, seeing as this happened in the UK. It also matters not what time of day or night it was - that's a little "Tree falling in the forest" don't you think?

I agree that the speed limits on well maintained, modern design, Motorways should be revised but the speed limit on this road is fine. Who needs to do over 70mph on this stretch of highway?

Similary, I'm sure Steve P enjoys the "Brake Assist" feature fitted to his vehicle (though I hope he didn't pay extra for it, seeing as it's just ABS by another name) but there are still plenty of vehicles in regular use that do not enjoy modern safety features. Hence our speed limits are maintained.

I'm glad Mr. Hughes enjoys his adoptive country, long may he stay there.
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Steve P,

Aylesbury 26/03/2008 00:02:20
The Brake Assist on my car (BMW) is a addition to ABS see this

Emergency Brake Assist (EBA) is a safety system in vehicles designed to ensure maximum braking power is used in an Emergency stop situation. By interpreting the speed and pressure at which the brake pedal is pushed, the system detects if the driver is trying to execute an emergency stop, and if the brake pedal is not fully applied, the system overrides and fully applies the brakes until the Anti-lock braking system (ABS) takes over to stop the wheels locking up.

However this is another safety feature one of the most sensible things I have seen in Europe is lower speed limits when it is raining.

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Dan,

Peterborough 26/03/2008 11:49:59
Comparing speed limiits in different countries is like comparing apples to oranges and the example of the Autobahns is not entirely accurate.
2 lane roads in Germany have a 115kph limit on them if I remember correctly, that'a about 73mph. Most autobahns are built similar to the M23 or the A1M with at least 3 wide lanes, in that situation, yes, I would agree that the speed limits can be ammended through an act of Law, rather than an act of unlawful behaviour.
As a minor aside: The aurobahns have a 115kph limit within 10km of a built up area as well I believe, you'be hard pressed to get more than a couple of miles without that in the UK, this is a quite small island remember.
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boxerfan,

Expat 28/03/2008 12:50:09
Dan, sorry but you are completely incorrect on every one of your points.

1. There is no national speed limit in Germany, every area has the power to impose speed limits in areas that they deem necessary.

2. 120kmh is the recommended top speed but once you see the white sign with a black line through it, you may go as fast you please.

3. Most of the autobahn is 2 lane and some areas have limits and some have no limits. The speed limit, if there is one does not depend upon how many lanes are available.

4. Not all autobahns have a 115kph speed limit within 10kmh of a built up area. The speed limit varies depending upon the time of day or night and sometimes, there is still no speed limit.

As for "most have 3 wide lanes", well, that would be absolutely wonderful if it were true. There are more 3 lane autobahns coming on line but they tend to be near major cities and therefore, sensibly, have a speed limit on them that is set by the local council.
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JR,

Aylesbury. 03/04/2008 01:11:38
So, hurtling along a pitch black road at 147mph is safe? Jeez, what an idiot. Why do people assume that a car will stop on a sixpence because the manufacturer built in a few safety features?
All these things can do is to try to stop your car in the shortest possible distance dependant upon road surface & conditions.
The overall stopping distance at 147mph (that's time to think and time to stop) is 1275ft or, a shade under a quarter of a mile.
With brake assist or ABS, the best distance you can hope to achieve will be 1275ft.
It doesn't matter how hard you try to pull the car up, you only have a tiny amount of rubber in contact with the road surface (Heck, F1 cars have humongous tyres & they still struggle to come to a halt) - which would probably be damp and slippery (some cars drip oil over the roads, grease thrown out from dodgy CV boots etc). Yet everyone has failled to take any of this into consideration.
And back to my earlier comment about the lack of street lighting, even on full beam with fog lights and spot lights switched on, by the time you see an obstruction it will be way too late to avoid a collision.
Does no-one even give a thought to the poor saps who would have to scrape this idiot up if he'd crashed?
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JHSB,

Cuddington 16/04/2008 10:58:46
I have just stumbled over this letter to the editor and have read with interest all the comments everyone has given.
I am impressed by the amount of people who are disgusted with Matt's comments and wishing him to stay well away in good old Deutschland.
May I just ask whether all these people also have comments on why in England people are not allowed to drive on the motorway until they have a driving licence? That is always a good one which amuses me. They haven't got a clue regards how to deal with speed but then they are allowed free on the motorway! Brilliant! I shall not harp on about how other countries on the continent do their driving tests and that in Germany for instance you are being taught to drive on the Autobahn as well as night driving etc, as this will only provoke another narrow minded comment of comparing apples to pears but you only need to drive on the motorway even for about 5 minutes and you are seeing nothing but incapable people hugging the middle lane and having no clue of how to drive on these roads!! Concentrate on speeds being reduced in villages and towns and leave people who know how to control a car up to get on with their driving!
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JR,

Aylesbury 10/05/2008 17:58:46
Sadly, the majority of drivers think they 'know how to control a car'.
You only have to look around at the numerous examples of gross stupidity on our roads to know that this is far from the case.
I'm astounded at the number of drivers I see trying to negotiate a road whilst holding a mobile phone to their ear or trying to light a cigarette or reading a map.
It beggars belief that there are still many who believe the law regarding seatbelts doesn't apply to them or their offspring.
And, despite all the signs showing speed limits, I'm amazed at the number of drivers who feel they can intimidate me into driving faster by sitting on my towbar - even at 50 or 60mph.
And then we have the real speed freak, subject of this thread...

Every one of these drivers will tell you how good they are, how they are the best or how they have never had an accident (maybe so, but I'll bet their idiotic stunts have caused a few?).
Speed limits are imposed for a reason - for the safety of all road users & not because we live in a nanny state although as drivers continue to put themselves and others at risk through their crazy antics, the nanny state WILL start to impose its will.
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