Australia has an obsession with low road speeds, especially on long country freeways. It's not based on anything logical.

Fatigue and low overtaking speeds are more risky than outright speed when visibility is 2-5km.

For example, 130km/h would be totally reasonable on the Hume Freeway. No problem whatsoever.

In other cases, speed limits are reduced by 20km/h on country roads that have been 100km/h speed limited for decades, even if there is no history of serious road incidents.

In some cases you can turn out of an 80km/h limited road into a 100km/h road that's essentially the same driving conditions or even tighter and trickier. No consistency at all.

Then there's the sheer inconsistencies. In built up areas with traffic lights and businesses and houses we have 80km/h speed limits and the same speed applies on many rural roads with long stretches of free movement. It's bollocks.

A prime example is the fact that Germany, with it's network of unlimited and high speed motorways has a lower road death toll per capita and per vehicle rate than Australia.

holy guacamole said..

A prime example is the fact that Germany, with it's network of unlimited and high speed motorways has a lower road death toll per capita and per vehicle rate than Australia.

I think someone, probably on here, pointed out that the German lack of deaths on autobahns was related to the arrival time of emergency services in helicopters and the like, so it may not be as simple as saying it works for Germany.

And tourist make up 35% of head on fatalities in Western Australia, German drivers top the list, then Swiss I think.

Australians drive different and speed makes them even worse, never mind mobile phones.