[Prowler]

We have a problem with our political class - they never base their decisions on scientific basis. Several years ago, when they wanted to increase the speed limit in the train service between Chennai and Coimbatore, they had to lengthen a curve near Salem. Road construction involves designing curves, turn angles and so on based on target speed. You seriously believe our roads barring a few stretches were designed for high speed traffic ?
How about the actual cars and trucks doing 140 km ? How many can manage sustained 140 + speeds ? How about their brakes ? Ask any hill driver and he will tell you if you depend on brakes alone to modulate your speed on your way down, you will have brake fade.
How about villagers and cattle on the highway ?
You will have multiple collisions and our highway will become a death trap than it already is. Never compare with Autobahns in Europe or expressways in the US.

[Aniket Verma]

People really need to develop habit of reading before they start shooting guns:

Article clearly mentioned:

For Expressway : 140 Km/h
For NH : 100 Km/h
For 2 Lane hgws: 80 Km/h
For cities : 70 Km/h

There are many expressways in India, where 100+ speed is safely possible. I am frequent user of YEW / ALE, both are beautifully laid out 6 lane expressways, with strict access control, clear road marking and sparse traffic. Though official speed limit is 100 Km/h, touching speed upto 120 Km/h is not difficult on these roads.

In Delhi, till some time back, Barapulla flyover had speed limit of 30 Km/h (Entry from AIIMS side), then 50 Km/h, followed by 70 Km/h in last section. Recently entire stretch is revised to 60 Km/h while entire stretch can support 70 Km/h. Similarly Ring Road can support upto 70 Km/h easily.

[msdivy]

This is the right way of going about it - pass the bill and make it a rule. (There was an earlier thread on the court shooting down the increased speed limit order).

***

On 140 Kmph, in most of the countries which have better infrastructure and far better road discipline, the speed limits range from 100 Kmph to 120 Kmph. If India wants to go autobahns way, this is the right direction .

Personally, I would prefer increasing the average travel time than peak speed. What I mean is if I can cover the distance of 150 Km in 90 minutes (door to door), I would take that, than covering the same distance in 120 minutes, with hitting a peak speed in stretches & spending some stretches in low gear to slow down for cattle, people, moped on fast lane.

Lastly, isn't 80~90 Kmph the efficiency zone for our average cars? Driving at 140 kph will burn double the fuel.

[ashokabs]

Surely we are trying to put the cart before the horse. I can't think on any highway or expressway in India where there was any kind of lane discipline. People at any speed will drive in any lane where they can find space to stick their car. Once lane discipline is enforced then gradually speeds can be increased. In cities owing to the high variability of different modes of transport starting from cycles, scooters/motorcycles, autorickshaws, trucks, buses, pedestrians and cars parked in no parking zones the speed cannot be increased without a great increase in accident risk. First traffic discipline then we can look at speed.

[Turbohead]

I love driving fast but 140kmph is too fast for a new driver who would've just bribed the RTO for a license a week ago. Yes, that's the real problem and not speed limits.

Driver training and infrastructure is far more important than higher speed limits.

Plus most cars below 10 lakhs are not exactly designed for high speed cruising and I would be vary of jumping the gun this soon.

Will totally support this move if the ground work was already done.

[akshay4587]

Originally Posted by Aniket Verma

People really need to develop habit of reading before they start shooting guns:

Article clearly mentioned:

For Expressway : 140 Km/h
For NH : 100 Km/h
For 2 Lane hgws: 80 Km/h
For cities : 70 Km/h

There are many expressways in India, where 100+ speed is safely possible. I am frequent user of YEW / ALE, both are beautifully laid out 6 lane expressways, with strict access control, clear road marking and sparse traffic. Though official speed limit is 100 Km/h, touching speed upto 120 Km/h is not difficult on these roads.

In Delhi, till some time back, Barapulla flyover had speed limit of 30 Km/h (Entry from AIIMS side), then 50 Km/h, followed by 70 Km/h in last section. Recently entire stretch is revised to 60 Km/h while entire stretch can support 70 Km/h. Similarly Ring Road can support upto 70 Km/h easily.

WPE is a disaster even if one has to maintain 120km/hr continuously.
I was on WPE a few weeks ago in a Jetta Tdi with cruise control set at 110, and out of no where there comes a unmarked rut and all 4 wheels of our jetta were in air for 1-2 seconds; I cannot fathom the repercussions at 130-140. And there were the usual animals, trucks/bikers occupying any lane they want at less than half the limit.

Our so called Expressway's aren't ready for 140 Speed Limit yet.
Even Globally the acceptable speed limit for most freeways is set at 100-110km//hr

Across Australia there is only one road which has a limit of 130km/hr.
Rest all freeways are 100-110km/hr, and yet average speeds are way higher than they will ever be in india, whether the speed limit is 120/140/160 km/hr.

We have the roads, but no one ever talks about fixing the root cause of all troubles. The average road user's behavior on road.

[alpha1]

What would be the purpose behind Govt's increasing the speed limit?
To make a drive/ride more thrilling for passengers? Absolutely not.

From what I understand the push for increasing speed limit is more in terms of providing an overall faster transportation.

One means is to improve it from say 40 km/h to 80 km/h - thereby cutting down your travel time by half. Keep in mind that this exercise starts becoming futile since you will need to increase the speed limit in geometric progression in order to achieve time saving.

The other means is to remove the obstructions/roadblocks, traffic junctions, follow street hierarchies, eliminate encroachments on our highways. In my observations and calculations - this is what leads to major delays on our city roads, highways, freeways etc.

[srvm]

Dear Shri Gadkari-ji
Presently, the speed limit on NH-44 (Bangalore-Hyderabad highway) beyond Devanahalli (a village about 35 kms from Bangalore) and Chickballapur (about 90kms from Bangalore) is set between 30 to 50 kmph. This is a divided 4/6 lane highway connecting two important capital cities of the nation. Please imagine the situation if you actually stick to speed limits on this stretch while everyone else zooms past you at 100-110kmph

Nuff said

[GrandTourer]

I don't understand why people think increasing the speed limit to 140 kmph means everyone drives at 140 kmph. It's called a speed "limit" for crying out loud. It means you can go up to that speed.
Even today if you're driving just under the speed limit on most expressways and highways, you'd be overtaking 90% (guesstimate) of the traffic. This is from anecdotal evidence from extensive drives on MH, KA, TN & KL highways.

I agree to the fact that there are a lot more things that need to be fixed to make the roads safer, such as strict lane discipline and proper barricading, but that doesn't mean we cannot increase the speed limit on some expressways and highways.

During all my drives post lockdown (when cops are prowling the streets to catch the slightest of offense), I have been distracted most of the times wondering if there are cops around the corner, or speed cams at the next crossing. And the fact that speed limits change abruptly on many roads adds fuel to the fire, with no clear signage.

This in my opinion causes more fatigue and takes the attention away from the road causing driver errors. If I knew that I'm comfortably within the speed limit, I'd then focus more on the road than be on the lookout for cops jumping out from their hiding spots.

[Aniket Verma]

Originally Posted by akshay4587

WPE is a disaster even if one has to maintain 120km/hr continuously.
I was on WPE a few weeks ago in a Jetta Tdi with cruise control set at 110,
Our so called Expressway's aren't ready for 140 Speed Limit yet.
Even Globally the acceptable speed limit for most freeways is set at 100-110km//hr

Across Australia there is only one road which has a limit of 130km/hr.
Rest all freeways are 100-110km/hr, and yet average speeds are way higher than they will ever be in india, whether the speed limit is 120/140/160 km/hr.

We have the roads, but no one ever talks about fixing the root cause of all troubles. The average road user's behavior on road.

Again comparing Apples & Oranges, Also, why do we need validation from West? Or follow their precedents?

A 140 Km/h does not means everyone has to drive at that speed. Most present day vehicles won't go above 120Kmph, yet for those who want to fly their vehicle, even 60 Kmph will not hold them.

So, why restrict a well driven & capable vehicle? The revision in speed limits will not result in much saving of travel time, but allow a more peaceful drive by not worrying about a hiding speed cam, when your capable vehicle touch 101/102 kmph on a straight empty road.

[akshay4587]

Originally Posted by Aniket Verma

Again comparing Apples & Oranges, Also, why do we need validation from West? Or follow their precedents?

A 140 Km/h does not means everyone has to drive at that speed. Most present day vehicles won't go above 120Kmph, yet for those who want to fly their vehicle, even 60 Kmph will not hold them.

So, why restrict a well driven & capable vehicle? The revision in speed limits will not result in much saving of travel time, but allow a more peaceful drive by not worrying about a hiding speed cam, when your capable vehicle touch 101/102 kmph on a straight empty road.

Can you guess, why the number of fatalities is generally lower in developed countries, and the major consensus is the almost everyone follows the rules and Majority of the traffic flows at a similar speed which is usually closer to the set limit.

I do not get the point of advocacy for this limit of 140km/hr for cars or people who can manage it. Why is no one thinking of repercussions, like if by any chance a person with much slower reflexes without looking, decides to jump into your lane doing 60km/hr while you are doing 140km/hr. ( It has happened to me many times).

People who want to drive at 140km/hr are still doing it, they just slow down for speed traps. Most of us just want to be able to do it, just because it will be legal, without thinking about the slower traffic and behavior of the drivers driving those vehicles.

There is no point of having an expressway with 140km/hr limit, if one has to deal with those sad trucks with bald tyres and no safety features, driving in any random lane as they feel like.

I rest my case!!!!

[RohaNN_kWh]

Great Move, considering there aren't many motorways capable of providing a safe 140 Kmph Cruising environment without people driving at 50 on the right lane !!

Also, what will they do with lakhs of cars with the extremely annoying 120 kmph continuous beeps ??

Tell the manufactures to disable them manually via software update? individually for every vehicle?

Increase the beeps to 140 Kmph? or just ignore them?

[Aniket Verma]

Originally Posted by akshay4587

Can you guess, why the number of fatalities is generally lower in developed countries, and the major consensus is the almost everyone follows the rules and Majority of the traffic flows at a similar speed which is usually closer to the set limit.

I do not get the point of advocacy for this limit of 140km/hr for cars or people who can manage it. Why is no one thinking of repercussions, like if by any chance a person with much slower reflexes without looking, decides to jump into your lane doing 60km/hr while you are doing 140km/hr. ( It has happened to me many times).

People who want to drive at 140km/hr are still doing it, they just slow down for speed traps. Most of us just want to be able to do it, just because it will be legal, without thinking about the slower traffic and behavior of the drivers driving those vehicles.

There is no point of having an expressway with 140km/hr limit, if one has to deal with those sad trucks with bald tyres and no safety features, driving in any random lane as they feel like.

I rest my case!!!!

Again, mixing speed of the vehicle with road habits & vehicle's structural integrity. Having a speed limit due irresponsible road manners of some travelers is not a solution. It's more of acting like an ostrich.

Shall we remove traffic signals or ban pedestrian crossings, as many accidents happen due to people not following signal etiquettes?

In Gurugram, speed limit on Golf Course Road has been reduced to 50 km/h from the earlier 70 km/h after a high profile bike accident. Do people follow the 50 km/h speed limit or has the number of accidents reduced after the new limit has been implemented? The answer is no. It has only resulted in increase of the traffic police's revenue.

Low accident death rate in western countries, is because vehicles have more safety equipment compared to their Indian counterparts.

[akshay4587]

Originally Posted by Aniket Verma

Again, mixing speed of the vehicle with road habits & vehicle's structural integrity. Having a speed limit due irresponsible road manners of some travelers is not a solution. It's more of acting like an Ostrich.

Shall be remove Traffic Signals or ban pedestrian crossing, as many accidents happens due to people not following signal etiquettes.

In Gurugram, speed limit on Golf Course road is reduced to 50 Km from earlier 70 km after a high profile bike accident. Does people follow 50Km speed limit or has the number of accidents been reduced after new limit? Answer is no. It has only resulted in increase of Traffic Police's revenue.

Low accident deaths in Western countries, is b'cos vehicles have more safety equipment's compared to their Indian counterparts.

So, why stop at 140, might as well raise it to the car's top speed; after all I paid for my car, so I should be allowed to utilize it's 100% power.

Low accident deaths in Western or Developed Countries is not because they have safer cars, it's because most of the people tend to follow all traffic rules, It has nothing to do with car's safety, we have similar cars here; if not safer.
Again, you are missing the point, and contradicting your own statement.
Since lowering the speed limit from 70 to 50 has not fixed the problem, so might as well go bonkers and raise it to 140!!!!.

Speed was never a problem and will never be; its the behavior of people on road that matters.

[Aniket Verma]

Originally Posted by akshay4587

Speed was never a problem and will never be; its the behavior of people on road that matters.

Yet, you want to restrict the activity which in your words is not a problem.

Again,

- Proposed speed limits are not applicable on all roads
- Higher speed limits, does not means every will drive at upper limit, nor they can be sustained for longer periods unless traffic, road condition & weather permits
- What they allow, will be an opportunity to enjoy the machines to their capabilities, if the road conditions are favorable
- If a driver cannot ascertain his cruise speed in a given environment, he will be a threat to fellow motorist, irrespective of applicable speed limit

P.S.: What Mr. Gadkari has been quoted for is a mere wishlist. Speed limits in our country are decided by local governing body and they will have the final say in this matter irrespective of the Central bill in this matter.