[Closed] Speeding motorists - why?

Because it's fun.

To get to their destination one or two minutes earlier.

It's fun driving a shopping/family car fast through an probably straight semi-urban road? You must have a dull life.

If I speed to and from work ever day, I save about 10mins each way. That's an hour a week, 2 days a year, or an extra 2 months by the time I retire. 2 Months is a lot. I'll keep going thanks.

It's fun driving a shopping/family car fast through an probably straight semi-urban road? You must have a dull life.

That's a lot of assumptions to be making based on the OP.

Populated area with side roads and house driveways directly on to it. Perfectly rational to be a 40mph zone, but you go ahead, you know better.

I know there are always a-holes who put their own enjoyment, time, etc above the safety of others. That wasn't the point - the police are out to catch them. I don't get why a significant proportion of the other motorists think it's a good idea to warn them so they don't get caught. Not getting caught won't make them rethink.

You must have a dull life.

Plenty of other thing to excite that don't put others at risk from it.

In fairness i tend to speed probably more than i should, but i never have an issue with people doing the speed limit. Its the people who trundle along at 20-30mph in 40-50 zones that are my biggest bugbear. If there's no reason not to do the speed limit then why don't they do it?! That's what leads to stupid overtakes in my experience and that's when the danger element kicks in.

Awaits angry mob and pitchforks 😀

I have no issue with it on motorways - but rural roads and urban areas deserve respect. Kids play outside , folk are out walking /cycling /cars are obstructing views , cars are joining from minor roads etc etc.

My biggest bugbare atm is the farmers son recently passing his test and thinking that the long singletrack straight past my house is a good place to do 100+ mph in his old is300 as if he is in the rac lombard ( the roads actualy part of the granite city rally occasionally) .... Hes nearly come a cropper more than once by expecting me to pull into the ditch to allow him to continue .... I dont 🙂 ill be visiting his father shortly.

ekul : it's a speed limit, not a speed target

I've been nicked a couple of times, both on motorways. I [u]do not [/u] speed through built up areas, 20/30/40/50 limits. I might 'push on' a bit on a twisty (60 limit) road in the middle of nowhere (for fun! yes fun!), but never silly.

I believe the motorway limit to be a bit of a farce with current cars in mind, and both times I was nicked I was keeping up with the general flow of traffic, and got done (no doubt along with hundreds of others)by camera vans.

Is it not analogous to being in a shop and seeing someone shoplifting? Wouldn't you tell the shopkeeper? I'm pretty sure most wouldn't warn the shoplifter that there was store detective watching them in the next aisle? So why do people tell the speeders that there's a copper waiting round the bend?

ekul : it's a speed limit, not a speed target

Yes it is, but doing significantly less than it, is dangerous. That's why coppers will pull over people doing 40 on the motorway.

Like most I probably speed more than I should and I enjoy a good blast down a country lane. However speeding past houses really winds me up. It's not big, and t's not fun in the slightest. I also understand that some country lanes aren't suitable for driving down quickly or even at the speed limit due to traffic, narrowness etc.

I like cars and drive something with a bit of poke but there's a time and a place to drive quickly and outside someone's house isn't it. Nor is a busy road with badly sighted corners.

Part of the issue is modern cars are so fast and insulate you from the sensation that it just doesn't seem fast the RS6 that I drove hit silly speeds without breaking sweat. It didn't even feel like you were going fast.

I think peole warn others because it's actually very easy to creep over the speed limit unintentionally, we're only human, and even a few mph over will get you nicked.

I do see that point, and that's where the shoplifting analogy breaks down, but i still lack sympathy - I find the big clock thing on my dashboard usually enables me to judge my speed fairly well 😉

If only they'd put big red and white signs alongside the road at regular intervals that I could check the clock against.

i'm the other sort, if i see someone flashing me after a speed trap i'll pass their reg number on to the police. its no different to any other crime, helping someone else get away with it is just as bad. i hope they all get points and lose their licenses. why do otherwise law abiding people think its not a crime?

If it was a crime to warn people of speed traps then the local newspapers and radio stations would have been closed down years ago. The purpose of a speed trap is to reduce speeding. Drivers warning other drivers achieves the same end with a lot less paperwork.

doing significantly less than it, is dangerous. That's why coppers will pull over people doing 40 on the motorway.

You'll also fair your test for it, "failure to make progress."

I have a heavy right foot sometimes, but there's a time and a place for it. As a random example, there's a stretch of road on my commute that goes from 30 to 60 to 30 to 50. The first half of the 30mph stretch is part residential and part concealed openings into industrial estates and such. It absolutely needs to be a 30mph limit. The second half, all of that runs out and it's a wide, straight stretch of road with nothing adjoining it. I have no qualms about getting up to speed early for the approaching 50 zone, but will always obey the limit in the built up bit. It's a silly bit of signage, I can only think that the planners expect people to start accelerating as soon as they see the signs and so have put them further down to stop people doing it too early.

It's all moot anyway, because regular away I'll follow someone doing 40mph all the way through all of it; so they're under my feet doing half the limit in the NSL bit, disappear off into the distance when I slow for the 30 zone and are then under my feet again when I catch them up in the quicker bit. WHY?!

Not in this case. A camera would. This might make a difference for an hour or two while in operation, but the speeders won't change a bit. Maybe getting caught and getting a fine and points might.

I find the big clock thing on my dashboard usually enables me to judge my speed fairly well

I guess if you were entering a 30mph with 2 screaming kids beating each other to a pulp on the back seat, you may be a little distracted and creep up a few mph, despite your best intentions?? Silly example, but you know what i mean.

I guess all I'm saying is that very occasionally, we all find ourselves inadvertently a few mph over, despite our usual impeccable respect for the speed limit.

If it was a crime to warn people of speed traps then the local newspapers and radio stations would have been closed down years ago

It is though, people have been done for it. I forget the exact charge, interfering with the course of justice or something. Failing to see how encouraging someone to stop breaking the law is a a bad thing myself.

Cougar - stop talking pish. The police are legally obliged to advertise where the cameras will be sited

[quote=cbmotorsport ]

I find the big clock thing on my dashboard usually enables me to judge my speed fairly well

spchantler - Member
i'm the other sort, if i see someone flashing me after a speed trap i'll pass their reg number on to the police. its no different to any other crime, helping someone else get away with it is just as bad. i hope they all get points and lose their licenses. why do otherwise law abiding people think its not a crime?

You should be done for wasting police time. How do you know that the people they are flashing are speeding?? It's not a crime. There's case law regarding this.

The only offence the police could try and nick a 'warner' for is perverting the course of justice, but they would need proof that a crime had been committed, so therefore can't.

I guess if you were entering a 30mph with 2 screaming kids beating each other to a pulp on the back seat, you may be a little distracted and creep up a few mph, despite your best intentions?? Silly example, but you know what i mean.

So you're driving without care and attention as well as speeding are you, sir? You need to be careful with excuses like that.

I guess all I'm saying is that very occasionally, we all find ourselves inadvertently a few mph over, despite our usual impeccable respect for the speed limit.

It's easy done. I got caught where a road goes from 50 to 30; I slowed to 30, but not quite soon enough and got caught doing something in the region of 35mph just past the sign. (I appreciate the irony of this given my previous post...)

If it was a crime to warn people of speed traps

If they are really there as 'safety cameras' to slow people down then warning of them does that job.

If on the other hand they are a revenue generating excercise obviously you don't want people to get warning.

[quote=Cougar ] I got caught where a road goes from 50 to 30; I slowed to 30, but not quite soon enough and got caught doing something in the region of 35mph just past the sign. (I appreciate the irony of this given my previous post...)
Been there, done that 😳

(though the place in question now has "count down" signs in place as the 30 sign was immediately after a bend)

But isn't this mainly because we treat the limit as a target? If it's a 60 limit and you're determined not to be doing less than 59 then of course you might "creep" over a little - especially due to contours on the road. If you were maintaining 55, then that "creep" would keep you less than 60.

Granted.

In any case, you don't get done for being "a few mph over" the speed limit.

Depends on the person doing the nicking. ACPO guidelines recommend 10% +2mph so 35 in a 30 for example as a cut off, but I know people who have been nicked at 33 for example. Zero tolerance anti speeding initiatives do happen.

So you're driving without care and attention as well as speeding are you, sir? You need to be careful with excuses like that.

Erm, I'm not using it as an excuse. I'm innocent. It was just an example of how you can be distracted.

Like others I'm not whiter than white and have been known to exceed the limit on motorways or open country roads. Like others I also am hypercritically scathing of others' speeding habits but specifically in built up areas. I live in a village that is frequently used as a rat run by otherwise urban dwellers and I'd break the speeders into 3 groups.

1. The statement makers - Those that speed for the thrill or to show off to passengers or just those around them.
2. The selfish - Those that speed because their need/want to get from A to B without delay overrides any concern for anyone else and a built up area is just an inconvenience best ignored.
3. The singlespeeders - Less capable drivers (dare I say it, often older) who have a fixed speed of circa 40mph that they drive everywhere at irrespective of if the speed limit is 20, 30 or 60mph.

I'm not sure if any of those groups is any more dangerous than another but group 3 seem the most oblivious - my mother being a prime case in point. Groups 1 & 2 are probably aware that what they are doing is wrong but just don't care.

Cougar - stop talking pish.

LMGTFY.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-12115179

Michael Thompson, 64, was pulled over by officers in Grimsby in July after warning several oncoming cars.

He was fined £175 and ordered to pay £250 costs after being found guilty of wilfully obstructing a police officer in the course of her duties.

The police are legally obliged to advertise where the cameras will be sited

My understanding that this was ACPO guidelines rather than a legal requirement. I can't immediately lay my hands on evidence either way though.

If it's a 60 limit and you're determined not to be doing less than 59 then of course you might "creep" over a little

Except, if you're driving at what your speedo says is 59, you're probably doing something in the mid 50s anyway. You'd have to 'creep' a good 10mph to register on a speed camera.

Erm, I'm not using it as an excuse. I'm innocent. It was just an example of how you can be distracted.

No, I understood that; I was extending your example to explain that telling a traffic offer that you weren't paying attention might not be the smartest counterargument to speeding. (-:

[quote=Cougar ]
Except, if you're driving at what your speedo says is 59, you're probably doing something in the mid 50s anyway. You'd have to 'creep' a good 10mph to register on a speed camera.
Yep. I was assuming that those determined to "press on" already took that into account, i.e. were already driving at an indicated 64-65.

To expose yourself to possible fatal danger is your own affair, however to expose others to a fatal danger that you yourself have created is crassly stupid and criminally selfish and should be dealt with harshly.

You only have to travel the m6 north of the current 50mph roadworks to witness a bizarre ritual of automobileexcess/peniledeficient displays by the white german car, shiny tie, bellend squad, I despise these arrogant selfish tossers with as much bile as my body can produce.

Slow down, relax........you are nowhere near as important as you think !!!!!!!

I hate this obsession with speed! Especially on country lanes - drivers thoughts are only about how fast they can go round the bends. How the flipping heck do they know what's just round that bend? People do actually walk on country lanes, and I can tell you it's pretty scary!
Next time you drive on a country lane, try imagining a pedestrian, or a horse rider, or a cyclist round the bend and think about how slowly you'd actually need to be going to not plough into them.
Don't tell how much of a driving god you are - just think about what I've said at the next bend!

trail_rat - Member
Cougar - stop talking pish. The police are legally obliged to advertise where the cameras will be sited

POSTED 9 MINUTES AGO # REPORT-POST

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1463472/Motorist-is-banned-over-speed-trap-alert.html

A pensioner who warned motorists of a police speed trap was convicted of wilfully obstructing a constable in the execution of his duty, banned from driving and ordered to pay £364 costs yesterday.
Stuart Harding, 71, was attempting to slow motorists down as they approached a Sunday morning car boot sale where many people were crossing the road.

This particular speed trap in Farnborough, Hants was a 30mph on a dual carriageway and up a small hill after a roundabout. It was very easy to edge over 30mph, the police would regularly target the stretch of road, much to the annoyance of the locals.

scotroutes - Member

ekul : it's a speed limit, not a speed target

Congratulations!
You've just failed your basic driving test. 😆

, if i see someone flashing me after a speed trap i'll pass their reg number on to the police. its no different to any other crime

Should you not be concentrating on the road? Anything could happen in that second or two it takes you to note their reg.

Does anyone think speeding is actually good?

You've never rode a motorbike have you OP?

Some people can drive safely well above the limit (perhaps have good spacial awareness/hand-eye coordination/ability to process info fast/practice etc) and others are dangerous at any speed and would struggle to clap their hands. Problem is it's very easy to think you belong to one group when the opposite is the case.

I drive at at speed i feel is appropriate for the conditions. Sometimes that is less than the limit, sometimes on the limit/slightly over and on occasions, well above. I'm selective when and where i speed and don't do if anyone else is in the car (but have with a pillion on the bike - with their consent of course). If i get caught (and i have) then i've only myself to blame. I don't flash other car drivers for this very reason but will alert bikers - it's a tribal thing 😉

As a side note, it really used to piss me off when some do-gooder in a car would flash when i was out on the bike, not to worn me of a police presence but because [i]they[/i] thought i was traveling too fast! How very dare they! If i want to fling myself into a field 3,000mph it's none of your bloody business.

You've just failed your basic driving test.

That's fine, he can just stick to riding his high horse. (-:

OP why do you 'stick' to the speed limit? You the type of person that worries me. Blindly believing its the right thing to do.

The whole point of driving is to get from A to B quickly, otherwise we'd all just walk.
Of course, we need to do this safely, but what occurs to suddenly prevent this as a car goes from 40mph to 41mph?

I see much more innappropriate speeding within the speed limit than over it, which is no surprise as if you convince people that speeding is unsafe, they'll go on to assume that not speeding is safe.

As a side note, it really used to piss me off when some do-gooder in a car would flash when i was out on the bike, not to worn me of a police presence but because they thought i was traveling too fast! How very dare they! Tf i want to fling myself into a field 3,000mph it's none of your bloody business.

Of course you can ! Its your human right to do so, as long as your family are happy to go and repair the farmers fence, assist the emergency services in retrieving your corpse and the rest of society can financially support your bereft dependants, how dare you use the roads for your selfish pleasure, hire a racetrack and grow up !

Cheekyboy that makes you just as selfish riding a mountain bike

Must be Surrey speed camera day, they were out on the Aldershot-Guildford road near Normandy this morning also.

i'm the other sort, if i see someone flashing me after a speed trap i'll pass their reg number on to the police. its no different to any other crime, helping someone else get away with it is just as bad. i hope they all get points and lose their licenses. why do otherwise law abiding people think its not a crime?

You sound like a reet barrel of laughs to be around old boy!

It's a very emotive thing that does bring out the militant side of people...I.e those that think cars are evil and all motorists should be lynched to those that think they can just do what they want.

There is no good excuse. Start earlier. Realise that 10 minutes a day is just plain sodding selfish.
Grow up. Its a law and one with a good reason.
I loath speeders. My vocabulary is inadequate to express it without me getting banned here.
Up there nearly Jimmy Saville.
Fun is not appropriate within other peoples lives potentially at risk.
Ever.

Euro - Member

As a side note, it really used to piss me off when some do-gooder in a car would flash when i was out on the bike, not to worn me of a police presence but because they thought i was traveling too fast! How very dare they! If i want to fling myself into a field 3,000mph it's none of your bloody business.

I recall doing my advanced riding assessments with the Police. At one point my assessor (on a fully marked Police Pan-Euro) [b]instructed[/b] me to keep up with him.

And he then sodded off into the distance well north of every speed limit in this country. So I did as I was told, and it was highly amusing the amount of cars coming the other way flashing me to slow down because 'there was a marked copper in front'.

"I know! I'm doing everything I can to catch him, and my 200mph superbike is struggling!"

Back on topic, I think [b]convert[/b] hit that nail on the head earlier in the thread.

And to look at it another way... why do people speed? Well, the last time you went out on your mtb, what was your aim? I bet it was to ride as fast as you could and gain enjoyment from that.

It's pretty obvious why. The speed limits are too low. 70mph on a motorway is mad.

i'm the other sort, if i see someone flashing me after a speed trap i'll pass their reg number on to the police. its no different to any other crime, helping someone else get away with it is just as bad. i hope they all get points and lose their licenses. why do otherwise law abiding people think its not a crime?

Ever been contacted by the police to give a statement? If not then I'd suggest none of the flashers you reported got done.

If any police force did take you up on it there is a good chance you would have to give a statement and be prepared to spend a day or two sitting about a court waiting room prepared to give evidence. Good luck with that.

As Jeremy Clarkson and co frequently demonstrate, not that we needed it demonstrating, driving cars (and riding motor bikes) really really fast is a right old laugh. And it has the added bonus of getting you where you want to be a lot quicker. So it's a win/win!

It's just a case of using a bit of common sense about when and where you do it. Can't see why people get so hysterically menstrual about it really

mattsccm - Member

There is no good excuse. Start earlier. Realise that 10 minutes a day is just plain sodding selfish.
Grow up. Its a law and one with a good reason.
I loath speeders. My vocabulary is inadequate to express it without me getting banned here.
Up there nearly Jimmy Saville.
Fun is not appropriate within other peoples lives potentially at risk.
Ever.

So why not lower the risk even further by walking instead of driving your car?

I 'speed' and will never ever warn anyone or want to be warned.

If you wont wear prescription glasses you deserve to be caught.

OP why do you 'stick' to the speed limit? You the type of person that worries me. Blindly believing its the right thing to do.

I never said I rigidly stick to the limit. I make my choices which is frequently below the limit, sometimes above (motorways typically) but in this case 40mph is a reasonable limit so I observe it.

It's easy done. I got caught where a road goes from 50 to 30; I slowed to 30, but not quite soon enough and got caught doing something in the region of 35mph just past the sign. (I appreciate the irony of this given my previous post...)

That's probably why the limits are set in the first example you gave: too many people going in the other direction would be doing 50 through the straight bit, then start braking in the residential part. Seen precisely this locally; people would exit the NSL into the 30, continue doing 50 through the safe bit, then end up doing 40 through the residential bit. What they've done now is put a 40 in up to the NSL which for me works much better in slowing the traffic down for the residential area.

The speed camera vans and the fixed cameras have to be signposted within a set distance else they can't operate legally.

I can't recall exactly the distance, but I think its about 1/2 mile before the camera.

Our local Drivesafe sit regular on a 30 zone that was a 40 and they make a fortune. If you pay attention you can see they are there as they zip tie a camera sign to a lamppost then remove it when they go.

I find it amusing when I get flashed to slow down seeing as I'm in a fully marked up driving school car next to a Learner driver. Do they think I'm going to let them speed ?!?!?!?!?!?

I loath speeders. My vocabulary is inadequate to express it without me getting banned here.
Up there nearly Jimmy Saville.

If only everyone just kept their eye on the spaedo.

You're all such wonderful driving gods - I do hope you take your crystal balls with you too, so you know what's just out of sight or about to happen.
*wanders off, shaking head in disbelief at such ignorance of safe driving*

I speed to and from work ever day, I save about 10mins each way

I'm sceptical of that, unless you are really taking the piss.

And let's just clear something up here. Sticking to the speed limit does NOT necessarily mean you are ignoring everything else. It is perfectly possible to drive according to the conditions AND not exceed limits.

And to those who say they drive as fast as you consider appropriate: that's what everyone does, by definition. Doesn't mean much.

*wanders off, shaking head in disbelief at such ignorance of safe driving*

So slow driving is automatically safe then? No it's not. It's possible to be safe and exceed the limit, just as it's possible to be within the law and be unsafe. Safe is safe - speed only comes into play when you have to stop 😀

*wanders off, shaking head in disbelief at such ignorance of safe driving*

[i]I speed to and from work ever day, I save about 10mins each way[/i]

I'm sceptical of that, unless you are really taking the piss.

Why? not everyone lives in a crowded city or travels during rush hour. I used to finish my night shift and head home on empty roads at stupid o'clock. The journey consisted of a few miles of motorway, some open A roads a few towns. If the conditions were right i could max out my bike which could easily double the limit in 4th gear on the m'way. Easily be be over 100 on the A roads and bumble through the towns at 30.

Urban/towns always to the limit. Approaching small villages towns on a/b roads always reduce to the limits. Bits in between I judge using my own awesomz driving skills.
Only had three points once in 19 years and that was winding my old eccy diesel van down hill before a big uphill.
One head on crash, my fault in as I was over overtaking three on a very straight road. Changed my mind after two, car number three panicked and closed the door. I was left stranded in my own 24 yr old stupidness. Just clipped wing to wing and it made a big mess! Old bill very sympathetic for some reason and no action taken.

speed only comes into play when you have to stop

Well done on stating the bleedin' obvious!

Classic STW speeding/driving thread. All the classic arguments and high horses too.

So slow driving is automatically safe then? No it's not. It's possible to be safe and exceed the limit, just as it's possible to be within the law and be unsafe. Safe is safe - speed only comes into play when you have to stop

Euro hits the nail on the head with this. Speed limits are pretty arbitrary, and safe != under the limit and unsafe != over the limit.

😆 at this thread.

Speed is only an issue when you have to stop or are stopped by a solid object at which point your safe speeding becomes unsafe and if you or someone else is unlucky a lot of excess kinetic energy needs to be absorbed. Speed limits need to be enforceable for all with no exceptions for the hyper aware driving Todd who we are privileged to have amongst us. Should you need to speed get a mountain bike and ride at the limits of your performance or get a really good motorbike at least then if you are not as good as you think you are Darwinism removes you from the equation more often than an innocent road user.

The amusing thing is that when ever they set up one of these "local" speed traps, they pretty much catch "locals" 😉

(everyone always says "i hate people speeding round my neighbourhood" as if the people driving around their neighbourhood are from somewhere else!)

The simple fact of the matter is that the law has to be black and white, so a speed "Limit" is pretty much an arbitrary fixed value, below or at which speed it is considered on "average" safe to drive. But "safe" is not a fixed value, it includes things like driver alertness, observation, experience and skill etc. Unfortunately, what we are seeing is the limit being constantly dropped to accommodate the lowest common denominator, ie. compete idoits behind the wheel.

The vast vast majority if people "speed" simply because they are happy driving at that speed, and there experience shows than on "average" it is a speed at which they don't crash (remember, every single day, hundreds of millions of miles are driven by people not crashing!)

Whilst we continue this insane fixation of not exceeding this single arbitrary value, instead of properly educating drivers and providing them with the experience and skills for them to properly and appropriately decide their own speed at any given moment, i can't see any improvements in real road safety imo.

simmy - Member

The speed camera vans and the fixed cameras have to be signposted within a set distance else they can't operate legally.

Incorrect.

Lady Gresley - Member

You're all such wonderful driving gods - I do hope you take your crystal balls with you too, so you know what's just out of sight or about to happen.
*wanders off, shaking head in disbelief at such ignorance of safe driving*

I always drive at a speed where I can safely stop in the distance that I can see is, and reasonably expect to remain, clear.

Do you?
How do you know your driving is better?

We could always get a man with a red flag to walk in front of cars, it used to work well I believe 😀

It would appear that many road users have a nasty sense of entitlement and many disregard the law due to pompous and selfish attitudes.

It's clear from posts in this thread that many believe they are clearly better drivers than the majority and therefore they can flout laws that have been put into place to protect others.

I'm not saying that the speed limits are set to high or too low and I don't really see the point of arguing it - why change it when so many people die on the roads?

People can try to dismiss it, but the faster you travel the less time you have to react to anything that happens.

I look forward to the day when black boxes get into every car and breaking the law behind the wheel becomes impossible to avoid. Or when the task of driving is taken away from us altogether.

As an aside, I can't really see how people can complain about the price of fuel and yet continue to mash the loud pedal at every opportunity either!

Thing is, it wasn't supposed to be a speeding thread, it was about why many drivers who would I'm pretty sure say it was a stupid place to be speeding, then go ahead and warn those that are so they don't get caught for it.

Jesus.

molgrips - Member

Jesus.

Dude with a beard, on a bicycle.

Just overtook you.

Windmills into thread

Come on then you slags!

The drivers who I love here in Snowdonia are the 50mph brigade.
In the countryside they do 50mph holding 3000 cars back.
They come into a village with 40 limit, they stay at 50.
30mph zone, still at 50mph.
Mainly non german cars driven by people who give no room to cyclists.

As an aside, I can't really see how people can complain about the price of fuel and yet continue to mash the loud pedal at every opportunity either!

As for speed only being an issue when you need to stop , so the laws of physics dont apply to motorcycles and corners then ?

Why is it pretty much all bikers have to speed ? Like it isnt an option to ride to the speed limit + 3mph. Not fair on the emergency services who have to zip you into a body bag , and yes I have seen too many dead people in RTC's aready thanks.

Did my speed awareness course ( 35 in a 30 at the limit sign driving away from the van as i was under the false impression they can only zap from the back window )I was the only 1 of 14 people who admitted to not speeding on the motorways as a matter of course.

As for flashing oncoming motorists my policeman friend reckoned it was perverting the course of justice and a criminal offence.

Lady Gresley ..I always drive fast to impress girls stood at bus stops

It's clear from posts in this thread that many believe they are clearly better drivers than the majority

This may be true, but driving better than the majority isn't exactly difficult.

I did a speed awareness course and answered in the positive to the question of whether I considered myself an "above average" driver. This, I was told, is overconfidence; but I wasn't really commenting on how great a driver I thought I was, I was commenting on how shit everyone else is.

I used to earn a living as a motorbike courier! It was mental! I was young, stupid, rode a succession of terrifyingly fast 2 wheeled rocket-ships, and viewed the speed signs as a challenge to do at the very minimum, double the number stated!

I think the fact that I 'm still alive is testimony to just what [s]a fantastic driver/rider[/s] unbelievably lucky bastard I am 😀