Raising UK Speed Limit Could Send Out the Wrong Message to Motorists

Recent comments made by Transport Secretary Philip Hammond that driving faster on UK motorways could cut journey times have resulted in a quick and adamant response from speed awareness campaigners Coyote. The company that makes the Mini Coyote V2 speed camera alert device says this raising of the motorway limit to 80mph sends out “the wrong signal to drivers and makes a mockery of road safety policy”, according to an official press release.

“On the UK’s already congested motorways, is it really sensible to suggest that drivers increase their speed in order to get to their destination quicker? Road safety has always been, and must remain, the principal driver behind any change in policy – this suggestion appears to signal a worrying change of emphasis,” Andrew Smith, Managing Director of Cobra UK, the UK distributors of the Mini Coyote speed camera alert system.

His concerns are shared by the Parliamentary Advisory Council on Transport Safety (PACTS), whose research suggests that motorway casualties could rise by between 5 and 10 per cent if the 80mph limit would be introduced. Coyote also indicates that the speed carries with it increases in fuel consumption. If you add the environmental impact of the increased CO2 emissions, the disadvantages start to outweigh the benefits.

“An extra 10mph on the motorway is not going to make any meaningful change to individual journey times and certainly can’t outweigh the potential safety risks, wasteful fuel use and loss of natural resources that are already rapidly running out,” added Smith. “We welcome the government’s relentless drive to tackle the UK’s economic difficulties, however using it as justification for this latest idea just doesn’t seem credible.”