National speed limit

[Bikertec 12]

When did the national speed limit change to 70mph and why does anyone know.

[frenchfrie 10]

Found this:

 

It is not as if the 70 mph motorway speed limit was set by any sort of science. As we understand it it was an arbitrary decision taken at a meeting at the then Ministry of Transport in 1965. In 1965 a typical new car was a Ford Anglia with an absolute top speed of about 85 mph and much inferior brakes.

 

 

Sure someone else will come up with something more robust.

[Lurch 10]

It isn't, it depends what road you're on.

[Bikertec 12]

Originally posted by frenchfrie

Found this:

 

It is not as if the 70 mph motorway speed limit was set by any sort of science. As we understand it it was an arbitrary decision taken at a meeting at the then Ministry of Transport in 1965. In 1965 a typical new car was a Ford Anglia with an absolute top speed of about 85 mph and much inferior brakes.

 

 

Sure someone else will come up with something more robust.

Well with that figuring we should now be doing around 120mph seeing a average new car does around 130mph with better stopping capabilities.

[A.B.Yaffle 24]

I thought the National Speed limit was only 60mph ... except on dual carraigeways. (And except for those who insist it is more dangerous to check your speedometer than to drive however fast you like!)

[Saxon 10]

There are actually 3 national speed limits depending on where you are and the type of road:-

 

Road with street lights 30 mph

Road without street lights 60 mph

Dual carriageway without street lights 70mph

 

The following link refers.

 

http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/09.shtml#103

[Cyclone 10]

motorway speed limits came into force in 1967 I think, so it being set in 65 would make sense.

Before they were set racing teams used the M1 to test there race vehicles.

[alchemist 37]

Originally posted by Saxon

There are actually 3 national speed limits depending on where you are and the type of road:-

 

Road with street lights 30 mph

Road without street lights 60 mph

Dual carriageway without street lights 70mph

 

The following link refers.

 

http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/09.shtml#103

 

so is a dual carriageway WITH street lights only 30 then?

 

dave

[fnkysknky 10]

Supposedly parliament got a bit miffed when an AC Cobra was clocked doing over 180mph down the recently opened M1 in '64ish and this led to the speed limit being created.

[Cyclone 10]

difficult to clock it given that they didn't have speed guns.

 

If you google it you can find the full story, it was one of the racing tests I mentioned, may well have been a cobra. It was a few years later when the speed limit was introduced, but the transport minister had mentioned that incident so it was generally assumed to be the root cause.

[fnkysknky 10]

Ok maybe clocked wasn't the right word but it's generally accepted it was doing 183mph - maybe the figure came from the driver?!

 

But yeah the M1 was a large test track for car manufacturers

[GazB 10]

Be careful doing over 70mph on the motorway!

 

I know of someone that was in the slow lane on the M1 doing 75- 78MPH, being followed by a police car (for about 5 minutes). Cars were zooming past at 90+ MPH, and the police pulled this guy and gave him 3 points for driving at 78MPH!

 

That's shocking considering how fast the other cars were travelling, and when the guy said "Did you see the other cars and how fast they were going?" The police just said "We weren't watching them, we were watching you"