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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!floyd!cmcl2!seismo!ut-sally!ut-ngp!knutson
From: knutson@ut-ngp.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.auto
Subject: Re: "The biggest farce ever"
Message-ID: <714@ut-ngp.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 19-Jun-84 10:07:10 EDT
Article-I.D.: ut-ngp.714
Posted: Tue Jun 19 10:07:10 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 21-Jun-84 03:32:25 EDT
References: <2104@ihnss.UUCP>
Organization: U.Texas Computation Center, Austin, Texas
Lines: 24

Yes, you may have better gas mileage at 55 compared to 75, but did
you notice that your Toyota also gets better gas mileage at 62 than
it does at 55?  Ours does.  This was verified by a trip from Central
Texas to the Virginia coast and back.  The average distance was about
3 mpg.  It's not much but every bit helps.

The real point is that the technology exists now to produce cars and
engines that have better gas mileage at 70, 80, 90, ... than they do
at 55.  Todays cars are designed for running best at somewhere close
to 55 so obviously they do worse at 70.  If the speed limit is switched
back to 75 or above then auto manufactures will just change the design
a little and now you have a fuel efficient car running at 75.

Now, why don't we discuss why we don't go the autobahn method of unlimited
or nearly unlimited speeds on limited access divided highways.  Another
reason for the 55 speed limit was the death rate.  However, this was
partly due to crossing lanes into oncoming traffic on the old highway
system where highways were not yet divided and colliding head on with
another car.  The other factor in deaths was drunk driving and such 
which had nothing to do with the speed limit.  Since we now have divided
highways, that should eliminate the problem of head on collisions.
That just leaves adverse weather and drunks.  Drunks have nothing to
do with the speed limit and anyone doing 70+ mph in a downpour
deserves to slide off the road.