paulhus@euclid.DEC (05/09/85)
Topic: Bicyclists and the 55 mph speed limit I just got my "Bike USA" from LAW and was dumbstruck at something the National office has done recently: they came out in favor of retaining the 55 mph speed limit! Now, perhaps my viewpoint is too local, but in New England we would never have a >55 mph limit on a non-limited access highway, and bicyclists cannot use the limited access highways. So, for us hereabouts, the issue of 55 vs. higher speed traffic from a bicyclist's point of view is a non-issue. With our great network of state and town roads, we are never forced to want to ride the interstate highways. So, my questions are: would bicyclists elsewhere be placed in more danger if the speed limit on limited access highways were allowed to go up? Would people in your area stand for allowing the speed limit to go up ONLY on limited access highways? Would bicyclists be placed in appreciably more danger if their non-limited access roads got higher speed limits (I seem to remember a 65 mph limit on one narrow road in Michigan back in '64 when I lived in Ann Arbor.) ps. I hope my HPV will be able to do well over 55! I bought a DeFilece recumbent and my rider, Chris Shelley (ranked about #2 in New England) has started training on it. The frame is still pieces of tubing. I plan to start on the shell after getting back from GEAR in the Bluegrass. The CAD plots look neat. I've got a guy building a recorder so we can get time-history printouts of practice runs. And I'm finishing up on a custom trailer. Just hope we get the HPV done well before Indy! Vancover in '86 would be one h*ll of a tow from Boston! N. Chris Paulhus DEC-Maynard decwrl!dec-10382!dec-euclid!paulhus
kehoe@reed.UUCP (Dave Kehoe) (05/13/85)
People often ask me about the "No 55" sticker that I have on my Zzipper. I always say that if a bicyclist wants to ride at 85mph, he/she should be allowed to. Cars, on the other hand, should have a 15mph national speed limit...
fred@varian.UUCP (Fred Klink) (05/13/85)
> So, my questions are: would bicyclists elsewhere be placed in more > danger if the speed limit on limited access highways were allowed > to go up? Would people in your area stand for allowing the speed > limit to go up ONLY on limited access highways? Would bicyclists > be placed in appreciably more danger if their non-limited access > roads got higher speed limits (I seem to remember a 65 mph limit on > one narrow road in Michigan back in '64 when I lived in Ann Arbor.) In California, cyclists are allowed very restricted access to freeway shoulders in certain areas where there are no other pass- able roads from point A to B. It is very carefully controlled-- signs indicate where you can get on and where you must exit. Some of these are in urban areas but most are in the mountains. On the other point, i.e. increasing the 55 mph limit-- Californians drive 65 to 70 mph anyway on both freeways and 2-lane state highways. Besides I think the argument for cyclists is academic. Once a car is over about thirty mph it lethalness (is that a word?), probably increases very little up to 70 mph and beyond. I also don't believe a bad driver at 70 is any worse than a bad driver at 55.
jan@hou2g.UUCP (J.NAGEL) (05/13/85)
<< So, my questions are: would bicyclists elsewhere be placed in more << danger if the speed limit on limited access highways were allowed << to go up? Would people in your area stand for allowing the speed << limit to go up ONLY on limited access highways? Would bicyclists << be placed in appreciably more danger if their non-limited access << roads got higher speed limits (I seem to remember a 65 mph limit on << one narrow road in Michigan back in '64 when I lived in Ann Arbor.) The answers are "NO" to the first question and "YES" to the next two. Because of the 55 MPH limit on limited access roads, there is widespread contempt and disregard for this law, even on the side roads that I as a bicylist use. There should be no question that driving faster increases the risk of serious injury to drivers and also to bikers travelling the same road. If there were a higher speed limit on limited access roads that bikers can't go on anyway, lower speed limits (i.e. 55 MPH) would be more enforceable and more palatable on the side roads. In addition, a higher speed limit on limited access roads would be good for bicyclists because more fossil fuel would be used up, making driving more expensive and reducing car traffic. Jon Nagel ..hou2g!jan