[ColdNoMore]

Originally Posted by Dr Winston O Boogie jr

Not true. 84 in a 70 mph zone is much worse than 18 in a 15 mph zone yet both are 20% over.

Sometimes percentages don't reflect the actual increase in danger.

You don't lose very much control of a vehicle by going 3 mph over regardless of the speed. An accident at 18 would not be much worse than an accident at 15. The same could not be said for the difference between 70 and 84.

Not true.

The issue is how much faster than the posted speed a vehicle is going and the only way to make a common sense equivalency comparison...is by using percentages.

Someone's personal opinion on safety...has absolutely nothing to do with it.

Almost any modern vehicle with a competent driver on an interstate/toll road is perfectly 'safe'...at 84 mph.

The same goes for drivers exceeding the speed limit by 30% on roads posted at say 35/40/45/50 mph. It's not about 'safety'...it's about exceeding the speed limit.

Or do you think those that exceed by 'only 6mph' in a 10 mph zone, should be given a pass also...even though they are exceeding the posted limit by 60%?

The bottom line is that your wife exceeded the posted speed limit by 30%...and shouldn't be complaining about being cited IMHO.

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Originally Posted by Madelaine Amee

Doc, help me out here - are we talking a speeding ticket in a golf cart or car? I do use this road to get to AAA and I drive a car on this road and I, for one, am sorry your wife got a ticket, but I appreciate the heads up that the police are out there. Now if they would come to BV where they are really, really needed and ticket a few, that would be great! I had better take my foot off the gas and slow down. I left a club meeting at Seabreeze yesterday and could not believe the speed - was like a race track and it was pouring with rain.

She was in our car, but I've been in the golf cart on that road on some long slightly downhill stretches where it approaches 25-26 mph.

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Originally Posted by John_W

So were talking about the road between the Belk's/Publix Shopping Center and Applebees, KFC, AAA stores? I can't believe that road has a 20 mph limit. It appears more like a Lady Lake speed trap when they need to pad the coffers.

I agree,. It's an absurd speed limit. Accidents are not caused by people going 25 mph. It's the same as the 15 mph speed limit on Paradise Blvd and Paige. They're ridiculous. Almost everyone driving on those roads could be ticketed.

[rubicon]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

I hate it when drivers merge with oncoming traffic---tends to cause a lot of front end damage

It was on the New York State Thruway and I was entering the Thruway via Weedsport to attend my last meeting before moving to Memphis and the trooper was sitting at the underpass. I had SAFELY merged as there were no oncoming traffic and was attempting to resume a speed of 55mph but he marked my speed as I first entered.

the trooper was being a smart--- and the Justice whom my attorney spoke with acknowledged that fact because the guy had a habit of such absolute issuance's it but again it was 5 mph over. Its this sort of nonsense that gives LOE a bad image.

the bigger problem with mergers are those who seem timid or unsure of themselves and proceed at too slow a pace creating more of a hazard. This is especially true if drivers in the merging lane are at or just above the speed limit

[Aloha1]

So, I'm curious. Who actually sets the speed limits in the Villages. If the CDDs truly are quasi political entities ( as the IRS lawsuit response contended) do they set the limits? And if so, how can the citizens get them changed?

I agree that 20 MPH is too low and 25 would be much more appropriate. In Michigan a while back, the City of East Lansing had a 25 MPH limit on a major state road that runs right through the downtown ( divided, 4 lanes). The State Police took them to court and won getting the speed limit raised to 35 as the judge concluded the 25 MPH limit was simply there for a "revenue enhancement" speed trap.

And a Judge who publicly states that he will ALWAYS only believe the LEO, is not a judge but a closed minded person who does not seem to understand the role of a Judge is to listen to BOTH sides without bias.

[CWGUY]

Originally Posted by Dr Winston O Boogie jr

I agree,. It's an absurd speed limit. Accidents are not caused by people going 25 mph. It's the same as the 15 mph speed limit on Paradise Blvd and Paige. They're ridiculous. Almost everyone driving on those roads could be ticketed.

Sorry Doc the speed limit on Paige is 10 mph. You weren't speeding, were you?

[bagboy]

Specifically Bichara Blvd and the 20mph speed limit. On this stretch of road as with many streets in The Villages, it's not about how fast you can safely drive your car, it's about how fast you can safely come to a complete stop when the unpredictable happens. This stretch of road has alot of access points to shopping, services, restaurants, etc. At any time a car, cart, bike, wheelchair, pedestrian, animal and on and on can enter your path unexpectedly, and you have a much greater chance of avoiding a collision if you are travelling at the speed limit of 20mph.

[VApeople]

Originally Posted by rubicon

he marked my speed as I first entered.

If you were exceeding the speed limit, you deserved a ticket.

I drove the Washington DC Beltway for years and almost never exceeded the speed limit, even when merging. I would just gently merge into the right lane and the drivers would either slow down or move around me.

Originally Posted by rubicon

the bigger problem with mergers are those who seem timid or unsure of themselves and proceed at too slow a pace creating more of a hazard.

I don't know about you, but our cars came with brakes. If a driver merges slowly in front of me, I press the brake pedal (try it sometime) and the car slows down. If they keep crawling along, I go around them. No problem.

[VApeople]

Originally Posted by bagboy

Specifically Bichara Blvd and the 20mph speed limit.

I just looked at the map to see where Bichara Blvd is. Yeah, we drive that road fairly often and only an idiot would go more than 20 mph on that road.

[Bonnevie]

thanks for the heads up so we remember to drive the limit around here. it's easy to creep over it.

[RedChariot]

Originally Posted by bbbbbb

Speed limits are set to help prevent accidents but yet, some folks just do not get it. Consider this:
At 66 miles per hour, you are moving 88 feet per second. In a cart at 20 mph you are moving at almost 30 feet per second. Slow down, what is the hurry???

Morse Blvd and Buena Vista are often like race tracks. On the straight aways people let it rip. We are doing 30-35 and being left in the dust. Where are the police? These are the main thorough fares in a RETIREMENT COMMUNITY! Why???

[circletrack]

Originally Posted by bagboy

Specifically Bichara Blvd and the 20mph speed limit. On this stretch of road as with many streets in The Villages, it's not about how fast you can safely drive your car, it's about how fast you can safely come to a complete stop when the unpredictable happens. This stretch of road has alot of access points to shopping, services, restaurants, etc. At any time a car, cart, bike, wheelchair, pedestrian, animal and on and on can enter your path unexpectedly, and you have a much greater chance of avoiding a collision if you are travelling at the speed limit of 20mph.

I'm definitely guilty of going 25 mph on Bichara and often get tailgated. But you are correct. There's a lot of access points. And too many people think each one is a four-way stop when it is not.

I've have had several close calls. And that's likely the reason for the slow speed limit, and why the electronic warning sign was up on that road for several months earlier this year.

[Paper1]

Originally Posted by alancusa

What am I missing? Isn't 26mph in a 20mph speed zone called speeding?

I think the problem is it is so selective or arbitrary. I just got back from driving to Maine and back and drove anywhere from 5 to 15 mph over limit the entire way, going with flow of traffic. I saw a handful of drivers pulled over during the trip and wondered how they ended up with the short straw. I know resources are limited but if speeding in Villages or on highway is a priority put on a full court press. If you are the one out of 10,000 I do understand someone feeling singled out. To those with no empathy for that I wish you no bad luck but you should get a turn.

[Miles42]

If speeding and caught I have no excuse and will pay the ticket. I have done so in the distant past. My bad.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by jimbo2012

Guess it's time to add a radar detector on our carts.

Or go the posted speed limit.

Originally Posted by bagboy

Specifically Bichara Blvd and the 20mph speed limit. On this stretch of road as with many streets in The Villages, it's not about how fast you can safely drive your car, it's about how fast you can safely come to a complete stop when the unpredictable happens. This stretch of road has alot of access points to shopping, services, restaurants, etc. At any time a car, cart, bike, wheelchair, pedestrian, animal and on and on can enter your path unexpectedly, and you have a much greater chance of avoiding a collision if you are travelling at the speed limit of 20mph.

Good explanation.