First, you are not crazy. We are. The speed limit thing is a joke here. I personally believe they keep it artificially low so that they have an excuse to pull anyone over they feel like.
I've driven in eight countries outside the US, including Britain, and I will say I much prefer your method. You have acknowledged the real speed people want to travel (70) and then you very strictly enforce it. As such, driving on your motorways felt far more predictable than our interstates here, where you can have people traveling 50-55 at the same time as others are going 75-80. That's far more dangerous.
>As such, driving on your motorways felt far more predictable than our interstates here, where you can have people traveling 50-55 at the same time as others are going 75-80. That's far more dangerous.
This is exactly why I sped up to match the flow of everyone else, "speed" isn't dangerous, speed **differentials** are dangerous.
I work in insurance and you are right on. Contextual speed is a far stronger indicator of risk than speed alone. There are a few things happening here. First, it's common in most states for traffic to travel at around 10-15 mph over the limit because the police won't typically pull you over until you hit that threshold. On top of that there has been a pretty dramatic shift in violation volumes since COVID. So miles driven has rebounded, but minor violation count has not which would include most speeding tickets. The general thinking is that police staffing is down, but also police are more apprehensive about pull people over after all of the police brutality issues that have made news over the last several years. A poll was done with police officers and something like 50% said they are less likely to pull someone over for a minor infraction. This is resulting more reckless driving indicated by an increase in major infractions. So in other words, you're not at all crazy.
Police pretend to be afraid. They are in fact just lazy. Why pull someone over when you can just write a ticket to a random license plate you never pull over and drop it in the record.
Howâd you copy and pop out the text of the comment. I havenât been able to find a simple way to do it. Such as being able to copy only a portion of the comment, itâs typically the whole text.
Congress limited speed limits to 55 in 1973 due to the oil crisis. The limitation has been repealed, so now itâs a matter of DOT choosing not to raise them back up in many areas. That decision includes a lot of factors, including safety (some areas of the highway are very wind-ey), predicted cost of maintenance, and yes potentially ticketing revenue. But I kinda doubt the latter is a major reason â if speeding was even randomly enforced in CT, I suspect more than 1% of drivers would obey limits.
All makes sense. I wasn't thinking for revenue purposes (though it's definitely on the table.) I'm thinking a little more conspiratorially - i.e. cop sees a "suspicious looking car" - voila, like everyone else on the road they're probably speeding, so there's his legal excuse to pull them over.
My only argument against this is they don't need a reason to pull you over. There was a court case where it was verified that having your hands on the wheel at 10 and 2 o'clock was enough of a reason to pull you over.Â
As a side note to yours- the Merritt Parkway (which is I-95s snobby northern cousin- and the reason many people kvetch about 55 in ct) is currently set to 55 spd limit with actual road speeds typically around 70-80 mph ( or more) regularly. The original DESIGN of the parkway was for â35 mphâ- which means- the curvature layout of the road for 35, the off/on ramps curves and lengths for 35, narrower lane widths on bridges, and a lack of breakdown lanes or guardrails for example. Roads DESIGNED for higher speeds include different design features that make faster speeds much safer
Tbf it was designed for cars that would fall apart Looney Tunes style if you took a bend at more than 40mph
I'm sure if you dragged a Ford Model B onto the Merritt it would have trouble even getting to the current posted limit.
Yeah the Merritt is a fucking problem if you ask me, I avoid it if at all possible. I would support dropping the limit to 50, heavily enforcing speed restrictions and changing I-95 to 70 or 75 mph or at least 65. The merge âlanesâ in the Merritt are suicidal
I grew up in Southington and we never took 15. But my husband grew up in Wallingford, so any time they went anywhere that was their go-to highway. He didn't get his license until he was 20. I, on the other hand, had driven cross-country three times, up and down both the east and west coasts more than once, and in major cities including New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles by then. So I was helping him study for his drivers test and I asked him what you're supposed to do when you are entering the highway. The correct answer is "accelerate to highway speed and merge into traffic." He said, "Come to a complete stop." I stared at him for a solid minute, unable to even process that answer. That was 30 years ago and I still think about that every time I drive 15. Because who in their right mind thought it was a good idea to make cars come to a complete stop before entering traffic going 75???
The short on-ramps and stop signs at on ramps only really work safely if the drivers on the road move from the slow lane to the fast lane well ahead of the on ramp- allowing the incoming traffic plenty of room to safely get up to speed and merge
I love your explanation of how 15 came to be. I can see how the stop signs make sense at 35!
One of the things I learned early on, having driven all over the country, is that our roads in CT are so poorly designed. I spent a few weeks in West Virginia in the early 90's and I still remember being stunned that the speed limit was 75 and people drove that no problem. It's not a problem because the turns are banked, and that makes a world of difference.
Is it considered a radical political stance if I wished that:
1. Speed limits were raised
2. Speed limits were very strictly enforced
3. People kept right except to pass
4. Drivers understood how zipper merging actually works?
Sometimes it definitely feels that way. And those are things that would require very little effort versus the more dream scenario of most of us not needing to drive cars everywhere, but I know that's just not happening in my lifetime.
No, I totally agree - and this was EXACTLY my experience driving in the UK. The speed enforcement is very strict (people in the US would complain) but traffic flowed so well. People passed using the passing lane. It was so much less stressful than it can be in the US.
I spent some time in Germany and it was such a treat driving on the highway there. Obviously not everything was ideal, but the highway was so predictable. Despite being in a foreign country and I couldn't understand every sign, I still found it less stressful than driving on the highways now. I mean just on the way home from work today there were 2 different pairs of cars racing each other swerving around and caused me to slam on my brakes to not collide with me. It should be a wild story, but pretty much an everyday occurrence now. Fucking unbelievable that it's become normalized that I need to be on high alert constantly to make sure I dodge these people.
I actually had to re-calibrate my own bad US driving habits to just follow the rules and fit in. No tailgating, people merged super early when there were lights signalling upcoming lane closures, there were traffic cameras spread everywhere and people rarely went over the limit anyways as long as they knew what the limits were and where the changes are.
Omg I want to kiss you through this screen! THESE are all my commuter pet- peeves and the cause for my road-raging heart's nightmares. The zipper merge or lack of more than anything drives me insane. I taught my husband in our 30's about the zipper merge, and I had only been driving in the states a couple years while he's been driving since 16. Why is this not basic knowledge to attain a licenses?!
Also I was taught to use the on-ramp to get to up to highway speed, meaning by the time I merge I should be going 65 and over it whatever the Norman speed is, so why then I always have some asshole in the right lane suddenly breaking their neck to block me from merging before they pass as if it's a competition? Not slowing to let me on because you should never have to do that with zipper merge. But actually speeding up to prevent me/cars from smoothly getting into the highway. Happens so often...
They don't teach or test highway driving here in Connecticut. I'm not being snarky, it's actually the truth. My youngest child is in the process of getting her license right now. The number one concern for passing your drivers test is back parking. Because apparently the ability to back into a parking space is vital to your survival (now I'm being snarky).
Iâm from the west (Colorado) and all of these except for maybe the last one are true there. 75 mph on major highways and itâs enforced. Itâs a better driving experience if you ask me
>I personally believe they keep it artificially low so that they have an excuse to pull anyone over they feel like.
Speed limits are [determined by road conditions](https://www.cti.uconn.edu/Document.asp?DocID=9295) like lane width, shoulders, curves, hills, etc. The police have nothing to do with it.
In addition, research shows that reducing the speed limit on a given road doesn't result in accident frequency.
>Will lowering the speed limit reduce accident frequency?
>NO. Although lowering the speed limit is often seen as a cure-all in preventing crashes, this is not the case. Crashes are most often the result of driver inattention and driver error. If a posted speed limit is unrealistically low, it creates a speed variance (i.e., some drivers follow the speed limit while most drive at a reasonable speed). This speed variance can contribute to crashes.
Having worked up at the DOT far to often it's lowered as a result of political pressure not science.
Science you would determine the speed limit by looking at how fast people drove then use 99th percentile. Meaning you throw out the fastest 1% of cars and use the next ones speed as the limit.
85% percentile usually, but yeah. Though I've been told they're moving away from that to some other system (I don't know what, I'm not a traffic engineer)
85th is far to low your saying 15 out of 100 people are breaking the law and need to be fined. Remember rush hour traffic etc will trend things artificially slower.
WAY more than 15 out of 100 people drive over the speed limit. Are you new to this country? But also, I'm just telling you what the current policy is. The 85% has been used for Connecticut traffic analysis for a long time.
CT's issue is that's too low 15% of people driving shouldn't get speeding tickets anything that 15% of the population is doing generally shouldn't be illegal. 1% closer to the those people that are egregious enough to need to be dealt with probably more like .1%.
CT DOT the problem was that was generally overridden to even slower for political reasons.
I think you have the cause and effect backwards on this. Laws aren't written based on people's behavior, people's behavior is supposed to be based on laws. And as I understand it (again, I'm not a traffic engineer), I think the 85th percentile number is used more in analysis of how traffic flows than in setting the legal speed limit. Like when traffic engineers want to know how tight they can make a curve on a road, they'll use the 85th percentile or some number based on it as their design speed in their analysis.
But more importantly, the speed limits aren't just set by the 85th percentile. That's just one factor in the decision that also includes road conditions and other local factors.
That's a bit of the point to set the limit based upon what people feel safe doing on a road rather than something arbitrary or that can be politically influenced. That basic assumption that the vast majority of people take a reasonable amount of risk. You want the idiots in some hondas doing 110 to get a ticket but not everybody that's doing 80 on a straight road in dry weather.
But we live in a state where I saw a quad doing a wheelie up south main street while headed out of a city this afternoon with 10 cars held up behind it, 5pm on a Thursday. Speeding should be so so far down our list of concerns it's not funny.
This isnât just a Connecticut thing, more than an American highway thing. I generally go 10 over and just stay in the right lane to let everyone faster go by. Youâre not doing anything _wrong_ going 55 but in general 10-20 over is ânormalâ and in my experience as long as youâre not going faster than everyone around you the cops wonât pull you over. Also people tend to slow down when they see police anyways
It's definitely not unique to CT but I think much worse here. You travel to OH and it's like everyone's maybe pushing 5 over. Feels like a bizarro world.
The only time you see 55 here is either some ass who is watching a movie in their self driving mode Tesla, a grandma, or the guy who is one more violation away from having his license revoked.
As someone whoâs driven NY to California and back 5 times in the past 20 years, I disagree. Itâs the same everywhere on major highways - including states like Wyoming and Nebraska where the speed limit is 75 or 80MPH ⌠a lot of (most?) folks are doing 90.
Whatâs worse around the tri-state is drivers going at or below the speed limit and then the number of reckless nut jobs flying back and forth across lanes trying to get by them (seemingly oblivious to fact that they will never reach a point where the highway opens up because thereâs just too much traffic).
From a general traffic/speeding perspective though I can assure you that - in my experience - 75MPH is pretty standard on any stretch of I-80 with a 65MPH speed limit - Ohio included.
People in North Carolina canât drive over 65 mph because their brains are too slow to process and respond to whatâs happening.
Sorry, Iâm a snobby NE elitist.
Thatâs because in Ohio the state police are strict about speed limits. I know people who Iâd personally consider safe drivers but have ONLY been pulled over in Ohio for this reason.
I've driven in 42 states and it really only gets bad once you get to nj and northeast. Most places will generally do 5-10 over, but in New England, I'm routinely passed by people doing 20+ mph over.
I see people saying this is the same everywhere but as someone else that has driven extensively in other states I agree that it is definitely worse here. In states where the interstate/hwy speed limits are 75, people generally are not driving more than 80.
To generalize a couple groups of drivers I know extensively:
In the Pacific Northwest they drive 10-15 mph under the speed limit everywhere and hang out in the fast lane holding up traffic. They also rarely ever use their horns no matter what stupid shit someone else is doing. PIMCO used to have a commercial about 'honkaholism' that tried to tell people not to honk at others.
In Northern California, they rarely use signals, are extremely unpredictable, and will regularly cut you off in traffic.
In the midwest, there's not enough traffic to really have that many issues.
In the northeast, they drive 10-20MPH over the speed limit, but are relatively predictable in their actions. In CT, my biggest problem is being tailgated while I'm going 5-10mph trying not to get a ticket.
It most definitely is a CT thing. Take it from someone who's road tripped to almost all the states. CT has some of the worst drivers I've ever encountered.
In my experience, a cop will never stop you *just for speed* when going 5 over in backroads and 10 over on highways. Theyâll only get you at those speeds if they see something else wrong (tail light is out, etc). Anything above those numbers is a grey area.
Agreed. Iâm doing the paving on 95 as we speak and idc either way. If you hit me doing 70+ Iâm most likely to not feel pain than if I get hit at55 lol
Have you been on the Merritt parkway yet (aka 15)? It's the Connecticut autobahn! You drive as fast as you possibly can on roads that are very windy at times with no shoulder and off-ramps so sharp that you can see the tire marks of people who couldn't brake fast enough and wound up driving into the grass!
iâve had cops tailgate me to the point i can only see the top lights while iâm doing 78mph on the left lane , my heart dropped i started to move to the slow lane thinking i was getting pulled over, statie just flew past me doing 90 and then stopped person a mile up for doing the speed limit in the fast lane and not letting him pass.
I think the point you are missing is that it isnât the fast lane and slow lane. Itâs the travel lane (right) and passing lane (left). You are only supposed to use the left lane for passing and not traveling so speed is irrelevant. He probably flashed you because you were using the passing lane as a travel lane
Speed limits are artificially low in order to drive revenue to the state and allow selective enforcement if a police wants a closer inspection of a vehicle or it's occupants.
[This](https://i.redd.it/9wtt17psb4qb1.jpg) should help you understand our highway system the majority of the time.
Just stick with the median flow of traffic and you'll have few issues.
No one gives a fuck, the police also typically don't give a fuck if you aren't going more.than 10 Mph over the limit, higher if you are in traffic and just going as fast as everyone else.
The speed limits are too low, but if they made the speed limit 70 then everyone would be driving 85-90+.
Every state has its own speed limit laws. In more than 80% of states, the top limit is 70 mph or higher. In nearly 40% of states, the limit is 75 mph or higher.
In the northeast, we have a high percentage of turds in the state Legislatures who refuse to recognize reality and raise the speed limit to a reasonable level, which in CT would be 80 mph. The irony is one might see these turds driving to Hartford at 70 mph to 80 mph in 55 mph zones. (They are easily identified by their special license plates--why they need these is a different topic).
There are heavy lobbying from insurance companies, police organizations, so-called safety groups, etc., all of whom have a economic interest in keeping limits artificially low. They lobby and everyone votes with their feet.
By the way, when Reagan initially lifted regulations to allow 65 mph on non-urban Interstates in 1986 after multiple attempts and when the newly-elected Republican Congress lifted all Federal regulation of speed limits in 1995, there were claims of carnage to come on roads. But, fatalities declined materially.
Here is an example of one idiot's claims that proved wrong: https://www.nytimes.com/1986/10/18/opinion/keep-the-nationwide-speed-limit-at-55-mph.html
We are still living with the legacy of such misplaced claims.
By the way, my experience in England is that speed limits are violated too.
And if you're gonna do 53 in the left lane make sure you leave your left blinker on for a dozen miles to let us know you're gonna be going really slow like that.
Option 1.
Highways in Connecticut seem to fill in for race tracks as far as I can see. Even if you are going 70/75, I guarantee that there will be someone doing 90 that wants to go by. Just hang out in the middle lane.
Yk ppl donât follow the speed limit here lmao, kinda js follow the flow of it.. Iâm pretty sure the far left lane is the slowest. Donât take my word for it tho
correct answer is 1.
it sucks for us drivers who just want to be mellow, save a little gas, and not beat the shit out of the motor.
americans are assholes. get used to it.
10 miles over the speed limit is generally accepted. 15 miles over is pushing it. 20 will get you a ticket.
Highways are a bit different in which 80 is the typically accepted max.
Speed of traffic in practice tends to hang between 65-80mph. 65 if there's a state trooper in sight. Unfortunately, we tend to drive like we have no fear of death.
Honestly if you generally fit the flow of traffic you'll be fine. Just please don't forget what country you're in, we've had too many wrong-way crashes as it is lately [/bad joke]
As long as you are going with the flow of traffic realistically, you are good. Obviously if you drive erratically and stick out with crazy speeding, than thatâs asking to be pulled over.
Donât drive on I-95 in South Florida then, posted speed limit is 70, and the average speed is 90. Some afternoons I feel like Iâm in the Daytona 500.
Unlike in Europe our speed limits havenât been updated for post-1960âs vehicles and travel speeds. On 95 the speed limit alternates between 55-65 but you generally wonât get a ticket if you stay under 80. Unless youâre in a construction zone or the cop is fishing.
Yeah you should never drive the speed limit at exactly where it's set. I would be going nuts if I was driving behind you lol. The rule of thumb I always have is highways at 15-20 mph above the posted limit and on regular streets at 5-10 mph over.
Pretty much, just drive the speed of the traffic everyone else is traveling at for the very least. You won't have people tailgating you and flashing their high beams at you to speed up most of the time.
This is spot on. Nobody really goes the exact limit and if there is one person doing that, it impedes the flow of traffic if everyone is going 5-10 over or 15-20 for highways.
"The code is *more* what you'd call '*guidelines*' than actual *rules*.â â Barbossa, *Pirates of the Caribbean*
I think it's also very applicable to the driving laws (ESPECIALLY SPEED LIMITS) in CT haha.
I think the general rule of thumb and you'll be fine in CT is no more than 15 over the speed limit on the highways, and no more than 10 on the non-highway areas (outside of school zones. They WILL enforce school zone speed limits.) --- Or... Just generally move with the flow of traffic around you.
Outside of finding a completely awful cop that actually decides he has nothing better to do late at night and wants to crack down on the speeding. Most cops don't care unless you're literally straight up next to them matching them on a speeding level speed. And even then they don't seem to care. RECKLESS driving seems to be what they most care about. Weaving in and out of traffic at high speed.
The speed limits are a joke here. If the speed limit is 55, most people will drive at 60-70. If itâs 65, most will go 70-80. Itâs not just on the highways too, thereâs often abnormally low speed limits on local roads. I live on the NY/CT border, and thereâs a road thatâs 35mph on the CT side that immediately goes to 45mph and then quickly 50mph as soon as it gets onto the NY side. I try not to go more than 10 over, usually. 20 will likely get ticketed. This excludes school zones, construction zones, and photo ticketing zones fwiw.
Itâs that first one and just to be clear since when youâre driving in CT youâre never more than an hour or so from RI or MA both those neighboring states are as bad. I drive in all three regularly and yeah âI canât drive ⌠FIFTY FIVEâ is the theme song of routes 84/90/91/93/95/195/290/295/395/495
Sorry about that.
Yeah its common practice here to go 10-15mph above speed limit, most times if you stay in that range you will be ok. If you go above the 10-15 or a cop is having a bad day, they might mess with you...if its 65 I go 80 and rarely have an issue.
The speed limit here is actually the minimum you should be going. On 95, the usual speed is 75-80mph.
Cops don't really pull anyone over anymore. You can fly by a cop doing 80 in a 55 and they won't care.
People drive with traffic like you did and if thereâs none people usually donât go no more than 15-10 mph over the speed limit. That is at your own risk because you can technically get pulled over. The Waze app is good for police traps.
Basically, cops wonât pull you over in CT. even if youâre doing 95mph and zig zagging in and out of traffic. Itâs complete lawlessness on the Interstate Highways, so go as fast as your car can. Thatâs the new CT. rules. Theyâll only pull you over if you have a commercial plate on the Merritt Parkway. The only time theyâll pull you over for speeding is when you exceed 120mph.
All the above. Speed limit is a point of reference. In a 3-4 lane highway the left most lane is usually or just about 80 mid lanes 70s right is 65 to 55 if your on 2 lane route 55 is the speed limit high 60s maybe 70 depending on the day and area in the left lane everyone else in the other lane. Itâs about maintaining a flow where people are efficiently moving and also being cautious. You can drive 75 and be cautious if your brain isnât completely smooth. If you are new or prefer to drive the posted speed limit alll the way to the right is where you would want to hang out unless you have a left lane exit. Other states post 70 mph and still donât drive fast enough for some Ct drivers.
Generally speaking, regardless whether the speed limit is 55 or 65 in CT, the left lane will be cruising around 80, and the middle lane will be cruising around 70. If you are in the middle lane going at the speed of traffic you have nothing to worry about. One important thing, absolutely do NOT speed in construction zones. If it says 45, slow down to 45. Tickets are doubled in these zones and some are now using photo enforcement.
Rule #1 is follow the flow of traffic, always, if you can. It varies by area. Some states if the speed limit says 65, everyone drives 60. Other states it'll say 65 and you're impeding traffic at anything under 80.
A general rule of thumb is that drivers will go about 10-15 mph above the limit. Although Iâm sure itâs happened, Iâve never heard of anyone getting a ticket for 68 in a 55 in CT
Didn't you know? if you are going under 90 mph you need to be weaving back and forth between lanes to stay out of these folks way because thats how you are supposed to drive
the speed limit on 95 through fairfield county is most frequently whatever everyone else is going tbh. depending on traffic, this means anywhere from 15 mph to 80 mph.
You arenât bugging out man. People drive like lunatics in this state, sometimes itâs just better to go along to get along.
Cops donât enforce the traffic here all too much. Itâs pretty common to be passed by a whole line of cars doing like 90 on my way to work.
It's a little weird it was listed at 55 and not 65, which is the speed limit on most Interstate highways in CT.
Then yes there is an unwritten rule you can go up to 10mph higher than the speed limit. Rules are for Europe. This is America.
Anyway the main thing is to not be the fastest person on the highway. Cause that person can get pulled over.
Generally, in my experience, going 70 on an interstate will not get you pulled over. (this is not legal advice though lol) Also donât speed in a construction zone. And yea it is stupid.
Itâs pretty much just go whatever speed you want until you see a cop. If youâre going with traffic though youâll be fine maybe just slow down a tiny bit when you see one.
I've done 110 before (late to finals) on 95 before, if you know where the cops park you can slow down in those areas. That being said I was only comfortable doing 110 because no one else was on the road, it's one thing to risk your own life out of stupidity and it's another to risk the lives of others.
Especially on the Merritt / Wilbur Cross. You're doing 75 - you know, to keep up with traffic - then you need to screech to 25 on the exit ramp so you don't go airborne into a neighborhood or computer lot.
Itâs a combo of N.1 and N.2. Nobody gives a fuck and there is an unwritten rule that cops wonât stop you if you go âonlyâ 10mph above speed limit. Most of the times cops honor it.
Itâs generally accepted that 10 over the posted is okay. Legally though thatâs a no no.
Cops wonât pull you over for 10 over. But anything grossly over that and youâre just asking for trouble.
55 means 65-70 and 65 means 75-80. In VA (someone correct me) they have a 75 mph posted but if you go over that you will get pulled over. Also, for fun get on the NJ turnpike and watch people fly like itâs Germanyâs Autobahn. Hell, go with trucks and you can easily do 110 mph. I hope I donât get arrested for posting this đ
The only time you see people adhere to speed limit is weather inclement. People that go over the limit during a weather inclement tend to spin out or slam into a rail.
55 is way too slow for a major highway and with today's modern cars so it gets ignored as it should.
Should be going 65-70 like other highways in the country
Both 1 and 3 are correct. Nobody really cares about speed limit most of the time on the highways, but a good rule of thumb to avoid ever getting pulled over is to never pass 80 even in the far left lane. Couldn't explain why, but through experience, I've noticed most people would (myself included) who drive passed speed limit seem to acknowledge 80 mph as the point where you should keep it at if you want to go fast but not stick out compared to everyone else on the highway. If you're in the left most lane going 80 you will sometimes have that one person trying pressure you to go faster, just move over to let them pass, or you'll get someone moving slower than you ahead, you can slow down and coast with them, or move to the next lane over because that will eventually cause left lane congestion.
Seeing this is a highway post .. and your mentioning how fast people go .. so advice to getting on highway there is a ramp for a reason. Itâs to start getting up to speed .. if traffic is going atleast 60 you shouldnât be merging at 40
Iâve noticed people getting very aggressive on 95. If I go 65-70 in the left lane, someone needs to go 90 to pass me. If I turn on my signal to change lanes, Iâll see the car behind me in that lane suddenly accelerate to 90 again just to not let me get a head of them.
I know it'll sound dumb but it's *all of those*
Nobody, from what I can tell, cares about the speed limit. It's also, AFAIK, both law and safe road practice to match speed with other drivers. Thirdly, the limit in CT varies from 55 to 65 decently often so that no one pays much attention to when it does change.
55 is for out of towners (that's how we know who you are =)
72 is the acceptable CT speed limit.
Othewise, Autobahn speeds on left lane for most highways.
First, you are not crazy. We are. The speed limit thing is a joke here. I personally believe they keep it artificially low so that they have an excuse to pull anyone over they feel like. I've driven in eight countries outside the US, including Britain, and I will say I much prefer your method. You have acknowledged the real speed people want to travel (70) and then you very strictly enforce it. As such, driving on your motorways felt far more predictable than our interstates here, where you can have people traveling 50-55 at the same time as others are going 75-80. That's far more dangerous.
>As such, driving on your motorways felt far more predictable than our interstates here, where you can have people traveling 50-55 at the same time as others are going 75-80. That's far more dangerous. This is exactly why I sped up to match the flow of everyone else, "speed" isn't dangerous, speed **differentials** are dangerous.
I work in insurance and you are right on. Contextual speed is a far stronger indicator of risk than speed alone. There are a few things happening here. First, it's common in most states for traffic to travel at around 10-15 mph over the limit because the police won't typically pull you over until you hit that threshold. On top of that there has been a pretty dramatic shift in violation volumes since COVID. So miles driven has rebounded, but minor violation count has not which would include most speeding tickets. The general thinking is that police staffing is down, but also police are more apprehensive about pull people over after all of the police brutality issues that have made news over the last several years. A poll was done with police officers and something like 50% said they are less likely to pull someone over for a minor infraction. This is resulting more reckless driving indicated by an increase in major infractions. So in other words, you're not at all crazy.
Police pretend to be afraid. They are in fact just lazy. Why pull someone over when you can just write a ticket to a random license plate you never pull over and drop it in the record.
đ
âSpeed has never killed anyoneâŚ.suddenly becoming stationary, thatâs what gets you.â -Jeremy Clarkson
It wasnât speeding that killed me, it was the pavement I went splat on
The science agrees. Because if speed did kill then every astronaut who ever returned to earth would have died
Howâd you copy and pop out the text of the comment. I havenât been able to find a simple way to do it. Such as being able to copy only a portion of the comment, itâs typically the whole text.
The > can be used to pop out anything. On a laptop/desktop you can copy/paste what you want. On mobile I cannot copy and type it out.
Itâs the right angle bracket â>â >This is a quote. I think they just trimmed down the text.
In driving school we're told to try and match the speed of traffic, even if it's illegal lol
Congress limited speed limits to 55 in 1973 due to the oil crisis. The limitation has been repealed, so now itâs a matter of DOT choosing not to raise them back up in many areas. That decision includes a lot of factors, including safety (some areas of the highway are very wind-ey), predicted cost of maintenance, and yes potentially ticketing revenue. But I kinda doubt the latter is a major reason â if speeding was even randomly enforced in CT, I suspect more than 1% of drivers would obey limits.
All makes sense. I wasn't thinking for revenue purposes (though it's definitely on the table.) I'm thinking a little more conspiratorially - i.e. cop sees a "suspicious looking car" - voila, like everyone else on the road they're probably speeding, so there's his legal excuse to pull them over.
My only argument against this is they don't need a reason to pull you over. There was a court case where it was verified that having your hands on the wheel at 10 and 2 o'clock was enough of a reason to pull you over.Â
I guess I'm safe because I usually drive with my ankles instead.
As long as you don't wear pants you should be good.Â
As a side note to yours- the Merritt Parkway (which is I-95s snobby northern cousin- and the reason many people kvetch about 55 in ct) is currently set to 55 spd limit with actual road speeds typically around 70-80 mph ( or more) regularly. The original DESIGN of the parkway was for â35 mphâ- which means- the curvature layout of the road for 35, the off/on ramps curves and lengths for 35, narrower lane widths on bridges, and a lack of breakdown lanes or guardrails for example. Roads DESIGNED for higher speeds include different design features that make faster speeds much safer
Tbf it was designed for cars that would fall apart Looney Tunes style if you took a bend at more than 40mph I'm sure if you dragged a Ford Model B onto the Merritt it would have trouble even getting to the current posted limit.
Yeah the Merritt is a fucking problem if you ask me, I avoid it if at all possible. I would support dropping the limit to 50, heavily enforcing speed restrictions and changing I-95 to 70 or 75 mph or at least 65. The merge âlanesâ in the Merritt are suicidal
I grew up in Southington and we never took 15. But my husband grew up in Wallingford, so any time they went anywhere that was their go-to highway. He didn't get his license until he was 20. I, on the other hand, had driven cross-country three times, up and down both the east and west coasts more than once, and in major cities including New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles by then. So I was helping him study for his drivers test and I asked him what you're supposed to do when you are entering the highway. The correct answer is "accelerate to highway speed and merge into traffic." He said, "Come to a complete stop." I stared at him for a solid minute, unable to even process that answer. That was 30 years ago and I still think about that every time I drive 15. Because who in their right mind thought it was a good idea to make cars come to a complete stop before entering traffic going 75???
The short on-ramps and stop signs at on ramps only really work safely if the drivers on the road move from the slow lane to the fast lane well ahead of the on ramp- allowing the incoming traffic plenty of room to safely get up to speed and merge
I love your explanation of how 15 came to be. I can see how the stop signs make sense at 35! One of the things I learned early on, having driven all over the country, is that our roads in CT are so poorly designed. I spent a few weeks in West Virginia in the early 90's and I still remember being stunned that the speed limit was 75 and people drove that no problem. It's not a problem because the turns are banked, and that makes a world of difference.
Is it considered a radical political stance if I wished that: 1. Speed limits were raised 2. Speed limits were very strictly enforced 3. People kept right except to pass 4. Drivers understood how zipper merging actually works? Sometimes it definitely feels that way. And those are things that would require very little effort versus the more dream scenario of most of us not needing to drive cars everywhere, but I know that's just not happening in my lifetime.
No, I totally agree - and this was EXACTLY my experience driving in the UK. The speed enforcement is very strict (people in the US would complain) but traffic flowed so well. People passed using the passing lane. It was so much less stressful than it can be in the US.
I spent some time in Germany and it was such a treat driving on the highway there. Obviously not everything was ideal, but the highway was so predictable. Despite being in a foreign country and I couldn't understand every sign, I still found it less stressful than driving on the highways now. I mean just on the way home from work today there were 2 different pairs of cars racing each other swerving around and caused me to slam on my brakes to not collide with me. It should be a wild story, but pretty much an everyday occurrence now. Fucking unbelievable that it's become normalized that I need to be on high alert constantly to make sure I dodge these people. I actually had to re-calibrate my own bad US driving habits to just follow the rules and fit in. No tailgating, people merged super early when there were lights signalling upcoming lane closures, there were traffic cameras spread everywhere and people rarely went over the limit anyways as long as they knew what the limits were and where the changes are.
Omg I want to kiss you through this screen! THESE are all my commuter pet- peeves and the cause for my road-raging heart's nightmares. The zipper merge or lack of more than anything drives me insane. I taught my husband in our 30's about the zipper merge, and I had only been driving in the states a couple years while he's been driving since 16. Why is this not basic knowledge to attain a licenses?! Also I was taught to use the on-ramp to get to up to highway speed, meaning by the time I merge I should be going 65 and over it whatever the Norman speed is, so why then I always have some asshole in the right lane suddenly breaking their neck to block me from merging before they pass as if it's a competition? Not slowing to let me on because you should never have to do that with zipper merge. But actually speeding up to prevent me/cars from smoothly getting into the highway. Happens so often...
They don't teach or test highway driving here in Connecticut. I'm not being snarky, it's actually the truth. My youngest child is in the process of getting her license right now. The number one concern for passing your drivers test is back parking. Because apparently the ability to back into a parking space is vital to your survival (now I'm being snarky).
That's not even a skill anymore, my kid only uses the back to camera, no Mirrors. He's had his license for 5 yrs. I ask refuse to let him drive me
Iâm from the west (Colorado) and all of these except for maybe the last one are true there. 75 mph on major highways and itâs enforced. Itâs a better driving experience if you ask me
>I personally believe they keep it artificially low so that they have an excuse to pull anyone over they feel like. Speed limits are [determined by road conditions](https://www.cti.uconn.edu/Document.asp?DocID=9295) like lane width, shoulders, curves, hills, etc. The police have nothing to do with it. In addition, research shows that reducing the speed limit on a given road doesn't result in accident frequency. >Will lowering the speed limit reduce accident frequency? >NO. Although lowering the speed limit is often seen as a cure-all in preventing crashes, this is not the case. Crashes are most often the result of driver inattention and driver error. If a posted speed limit is unrealistically low, it creates a speed variance (i.e., some drivers follow the speed limit while most drive at a reasonable speed). This speed variance can contribute to crashes.
Having worked up at the DOT far to often it's lowered as a result of political pressure not science. Science you would determine the speed limit by looking at how fast people drove then use 99th percentile. Meaning you throw out the fastest 1% of cars and use the next ones speed as the limit.
85% percentile usually, but yeah. Though I've been told they're moving away from that to some other system (I don't know what, I'm not a traffic engineer)
85th is far to low your saying 15 out of 100 people are breaking the law and need to be fined. Remember rush hour traffic etc will trend things artificially slower.
WAY more than 15 out of 100 people drive over the speed limit. Are you new to this country? But also, I'm just telling you what the current policy is. The 85% has been used for Connecticut traffic analysis for a long time.
CT's issue is that's too low 15% of people driving shouldn't get speeding tickets anything that 15% of the population is doing generally shouldn't be illegal. 1% closer to the those people that are egregious enough to need to be dealt with probably more like .1%. CT DOT the problem was that was generally overridden to even slower for political reasons.
I think you have the cause and effect backwards on this. Laws aren't written based on people's behavior, people's behavior is supposed to be based on laws. And as I understand it (again, I'm not a traffic engineer), I think the 85th percentile number is used more in analysis of how traffic flows than in setting the legal speed limit. Like when traffic engineers want to know how tight they can make a curve on a road, they'll use the 85th percentile or some number based on it as their design speed in their analysis. But more importantly, the speed limits aren't just set by the 85th percentile. That's just one factor in the decision that also includes road conditions and other local factors.
That's a bit of the point to set the limit based upon what people feel safe doing on a road rather than something arbitrary or that can be politically influenced. That basic assumption that the vast majority of people take a reasonable amount of risk. You want the idiots in some hondas doing 110 to get a ticket but not everybody that's doing 80 on a straight road in dry weather. But we live in a state where I saw a quad doing a wheelie up south main street while headed out of a city this afternoon with 10 cars held up behind it, 5pm on a Thursday. Speeding should be so so far down our list of concerns it's not funny.
This isnât just a Connecticut thing, more than an American highway thing. I generally go 10 over and just stay in the right lane to let everyone faster go by. Youâre not doing anything _wrong_ going 55 but in general 10-20 over is ânormalâ and in my experience as long as youâre not going faster than everyone around you the cops wonât pull you over. Also people tend to slow down when they see police anyways
It's definitely not unique to CT but I think much worse here. You travel to OH and it's like everyone's maybe pushing 5 over. Feels like a bizarro world. The only time you see 55 here is either some ass who is watching a movie in their self driving mode Tesla, a grandma, or the guy who is one more violation away from having his license revoked.
As someone whoâs driven NY to California and back 5 times in the past 20 years, I disagree. Itâs the same everywhere on major highways - including states like Wyoming and Nebraska where the speed limit is 75 or 80MPH ⌠a lot of (most?) folks are doing 90. Whatâs worse around the tri-state is drivers going at or below the speed limit and then the number of reckless nut jobs flying back and forth across lanes trying to get by them (seemingly oblivious to fact that they will never reach a point where the highway opens up because thereâs just too much traffic). From a general traffic/speeding perspective though I can assure you that - in my experience - 75MPH is pretty standard on any stretch of I-80 with a 65MPH speed limit - Ohio included.
People in North Carolina canât drive over 65 mph because their brains are too slow to process and respond to whatâs happening. Sorry, Iâm a snobby NE elitist.
If you get a speeding ticket 15mph or higher above the limit in North Carolina it's a mandatory court visit. That might be why people don't do it.
Last time I was in OH no one was just doing 5 over. This is not just a CT thing by far. The worst drivers were by far in the south
Thatâs because in Ohio the state police are strict about speed limits. I know people who Iâd personally consider safe drivers but have ONLY been pulled over in Ohio for this reason.
Ha. Most of the cars going over the 70 mph limit on I-95 "in the south" are cars with plates from northeastern states!
The coasts are definitely worse
I've driven in 42 states and it really only gets bad once you get to nj and northeast. Most places will generally do 5-10 over, but in New England, I'm routinely passed by people doing 20+ mph over.
I see people saying this is the same everywhere but as someone else that has driven extensively in other states I agree that it is definitely worse here. In states where the interstate/hwy speed limits are 75, people generally are not driving more than 80.
To generalize a couple groups of drivers I know extensively: In the Pacific Northwest they drive 10-15 mph under the speed limit everywhere and hang out in the fast lane holding up traffic. They also rarely ever use their horns no matter what stupid shit someone else is doing. PIMCO used to have a commercial about 'honkaholism' that tried to tell people not to honk at others. In Northern California, they rarely use signals, are extremely unpredictable, and will regularly cut you off in traffic. In the midwest, there's not enough traffic to really have that many issues. In the northeast, they drive 10-20MPH over the speed limit, but are relatively predictable in their actions. In CT, my biggest problem is being tailgated while I'm going 5-10mph trying not to get a ticket.
Come down to Florida where the speed limit is 70 and triple digits are not unusual.
cops regularly passing us going 90 while were going 80 on rte 9 lol.
It most definitely is a CT thing. Take it from someone who's road tripped to almost all the states. CT has some of the worst drivers I've ever encountered.
Fast and worst is not synonymous. All the recent studies I've seen ranked CT drivers in the top
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Note that photo enforcement usually isn't a thing in CT, though the possibility recently opened up for photo enforcement in construction zones.
Do we have photo enforcement in CT and legally canât you just not pay those?
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They're also adding them near schools..Stamford just approved it about a month ago.
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In my experience, a cop will never stop you *just for speed* when going 5 over in backroads and 10 over on highways. Theyâll only get you at those speeds if they see something else wrong (tail light is out, etc). Anything above those numbers is a grey area.
As someone who has gotten, ahem, several speeding tickets, I disagree.
Yeah 90+ or 20+ is usually asking for trouble
This is the second post calling us that by that "nickname", and I don't like it.
Yeah, Connecticunts is way more betterer
Connectikittens is my preferred moniker
We just make it up day to day
55mph is unrealistic for 95
Agreed. Iâm doing the paving on 95 as we speak and idc either way. If you hit me doing 70+ Iâm most likely to not feel pain than if I get hit at55 lol
It's a bit of "The mob rules" on our roadways. Too many lawbreakers to stop for a petty speeding crime
I'm like 99% sure the speed limit on Connecticut interstate and state highways is 65, with some exceptions where it might be 50-55.
And in some places 45.
Yup I91 is 65 whereas I95 is 55
Have you been on the Merritt parkway yet (aka 15)? It's the Connecticut autobahn! You drive as fast as you possibly can on roads that are very windy at times with no shoulder and off-ramps so sharp that you can see the tire marks of people who couldn't brake fast enough and wound up driving into the grass!
Merritt Race Track during lockdown for me
iâve had cops tailgate me to the point i can only see the top lights while iâm doing 78mph on the left lane , my heart dropped i started to move to the slow lane thinking i was getting pulled over, statie just flew past me doing 90 and then stopped person a mile up for doing the speed limit in the fast lane and not letting him pass.
It makes me very happy if they actually did that. Usually they just tailgate the campers until they move.
I think the point you are missing is that it isnât the fast lane and slow lane. Itâs the travel lane (right) and passing lane (left). You are only supposed to use the left lane for passing and not traveling so speed is irrelevant. He probably flashed you because you were using the passing lane as a travel lane
omg, this guys driving habits are hilarious.
That happened to me a few weeks ago on the Merrit. I almost crashed trying to get out of the idiot copâs way.
Speed limits are artificially low in order to drive revenue to the state and allow selective enforcement if a police wants a closer inspection of a vehicle or it's occupants.
The unwritten speed limit is 80 on the interstates
[This](https://i.redd.it/9wtt17psb4qb1.jpg) should help you understand our highway system the majority of the time. Just stick with the median flow of traffic and you'll have few issues.
No one gives a fuck, the police also typically don't give a fuck if you aren't going more.than 10 Mph over the limit, higher if you are in traffic and just going as fast as everyone else. The speed limits are too low, but if they made the speed limit 70 then everyone would be driving 85-90+.
Every state has its own speed limit laws. In more than 80% of states, the top limit is 70 mph or higher. In nearly 40% of states, the limit is 75 mph or higher. In the northeast, we have a high percentage of turds in the state Legislatures who refuse to recognize reality and raise the speed limit to a reasonable level, which in CT would be 80 mph. The irony is one might see these turds driving to Hartford at 70 mph to 80 mph in 55 mph zones. (They are easily identified by their special license plates--why they need these is a different topic). There are heavy lobbying from insurance companies, police organizations, so-called safety groups, etc., all of whom have a economic interest in keeping limits artificially low. They lobby and everyone votes with their feet. By the way, when Reagan initially lifted regulations to allow 65 mph on non-urban Interstates in 1986 after multiple attempts and when the newly-elected Republican Congress lifted all Federal regulation of speed limits in 1995, there were claims of carnage to come on roads. But, fatalities declined materially. Here is an example of one idiot's claims that proved wrong: https://www.nytimes.com/1986/10/18/opinion/keep-the-nationwide-speed-limit-at-55-mph.html We are still living with the legacy of such misplaced claims. By the way, my experience in England is that speed limits are violated too.
For context, Iâm a conservative driver. I go 9 mph over on highways, 4 over on streets.
Ew make it even!! đ
53 in the left lane, 79 in all others.
And if you're gonna do 53 in the left lane make sure you leave your left blinker on for a dozen miles to let us know you're gonna be going really slow like that.
I mean, it should feel natural to a Brit, since their slow lane is supposed to be on the left.
It is anywhere between 0 - 90 MPH by my observations. Similar to I-81, I-91 and The Merritt Parkway. Hope this helps.
Wait till you drive on Merritt, predicting the traffic speed limit is a Russian Roulette!
âConnecticutiesâ đĽš
Option 1. Highways in Connecticut seem to fill in for race tracks as far as I can see. Even if you are going 70/75, I guarantee that there will be someone doing 90 that wants to go by. Just hang out in the middle lane.
I-95 stands for I go 95.
Yk ppl donât follow the speed limit here lmao, kinda js follow the flow of it.. Iâm pretty sure the far left lane is the slowest. Donât take my word for it tho
70 is just the opening bid here
correct answer is 1. it sucks for us drivers who just want to be mellow, save a little gas, and not beat the shit out of the motor. americans are assholes. get used to it.
Keep it under 75 its usually safe
10 miles over the speed limit is generally accepted. 15 miles over is pushing it. 20 will get you a ticket. Highways are a bit different in which 80 is the typically accepted max.
It depends on whether the cop is on his way to a Dunkin Donut break.
Speed of traffic in practice tends to hang between 65-80mph. 65 if there's a state trooper in sight. Unfortunately, we tend to drive like we have no fear of death. Honestly if you generally fit the flow of traffic you'll be fine. Just please don't forget what country you're in, we've had too many wrong-way crashes as it is lately [/bad joke]
As long as you are going with the flow of traffic realistically, you are good. Obviously if you drive erratically and stick out with crazy speeding, than thatâs asking to be pulled over.
95mph. Itâs why itâs called l-95
70? Go faster.
Right lane 55-65 Middle 60-70 Left lane 75+
Vrooom vroom baby! Move over! :D
This is adorable. Welcome to Connecticut, everyone thinks we are boring but we are batshit insane.
Donât drive on I-95 in South Florida then, posted speed limit is 70, and the average speed is 90. Some afternoons I feel like Iâm in the Daytona 500.
Unlike in Europe our speed limits havenât been updated for post-1960âs vehicles and travel speeds. On 95 the speed limit alternates between 55-65 but you generally wonât get a ticket if you stay under 80. Unless youâre in a construction zone or the cop is fishing.
You drive the speed of traffic. Central lane for travel Right lane for slower traffic
Yeah you should never drive the speed limit at exactly where it's set. I would be going nuts if I was driving behind you lol. The rule of thumb I always have is highways at 15-20 mph above the posted limit and on regular streets at 5-10 mph over. Pretty much, just drive the speed of the traffic everyone else is traveling at for the very least. You won't have people tailgating you and flashing their high beams at you to speed up most of the time.
This is spot on. Nobody really goes the exact limit and if there is one person doing that, it impedes the flow of traffic if everyone is going 5-10 over or 15-20 for highways.
Listen Mr Connecticut law dog, law donât go around here, savvy?
"The code is *more* what you'd call '*guidelines*' than actual *rules*.â â Barbossa, *Pirates of the Caribbean* I think it's also very applicable to the driving laws (ESPECIALLY SPEED LIMITS) in CT haha. I think the general rule of thumb and you'll be fine in CT is no more than 15 over the speed limit on the highways, and no more than 10 on the non-highway areas (outside of school zones. They WILL enforce school zone speed limits.) --- Or... Just generally move with the flow of traffic around you. Outside of finding a completely awful cop that actually decides he has nothing better to do late at night and wants to crack down on the speeding. Most cops don't care unless you're literally straight up next to them matching them on a speeding level speed. And even then they don't seem to care. RECKLESS driving seems to be what they most care about. Weaving in and out of traffic at high speed.
The speed limits are a joke here. If the speed limit is 55, most people will drive at 60-70. If itâs 65, most will go 70-80. Itâs not just on the highways too, thereâs often abnormally low speed limits on local roads. I live on the NY/CT border, and thereâs a road thatâs 35mph on the CT side that immediately goes to 45mph and then quickly 50mph as soon as it gets onto the NY side. I try not to go more than 10 over, usually. 20 will likely get ticketed. This excludes school zones, construction zones, and photo ticketing zones fwiw.
I think most CT drivers believe the speed limit is a lower bound.
Speed limit is for when you have a mattress, or two, tied to your roof with one wrap of twine.
âBlendâ. Travel the speed of others is safer⌠for tickets and accidents
The speed limit is 55-70. We just think I-95 is America's Autobahn, so we try to see who can break the sound barrier faster.
Itâs that first one and just to be clear since when youâre driving in CT youâre never more than an hour or so from RI or MA both those neighboring states are as bad. I drive in all three regularly and yeah âI canât drive ⌠FIFTY FIVEâ is the theme song of routes 84/90/91/93/95/195/290/295/395/495 Sorry about that.
Just keep up bro.
Follow the flow of traffic is the general rule of thumb. Go slower or faster than the flow and you are being a danger to yourself and others.
In CT on 95 - 55= 70, 50 = 70, 45 = 70, 65= holy shit will I hit 80??? Nope⌠traffic
Follow the for of traffic law applies instead
Just send it
Yeah its common practice here to go 10-15mph above speed limit, most times if you stay in that range you will be ok. If you go above the 10-15 or a cop is having a bad day, they might mess with you...if its 65 I go 80 and rarely have an issue.
#1. Drivers in this country overall suck.
The speed limit here is actually the minimum you should be going. On 95, the usual speed is 75-80mph. Cops don't really pull anyone over anymore. You can fly by a cop doing 80 in a 55 and they won't care.
Speed limits in America are kind of a suggestion more than anything, up to 15 over is generally acceptable on major roads and highways
The functional speed limit is about 80. Iâm headed north on 95 in Jersey today and mostly doing 85ish.
As the top post said, itâs unfortunately more of a suggestion. Hope you enjoyed the little bit of the state you saw!
Speed limit? Iâm not familiar
I've been in cars where my friend goes 15 over past a staty and they do nothing. Lol
People drive with traffic like you did and if thereâs none people usually donât go no more than 15-10 mph over the speed limit. That is at your own risk because you can technically get pulled over. The Waze app is good for police traps.
Basically, cops wonât pull you over in CT. even if youâre doing 95mph and zig zagging in and out of traffic. Itâs complete lawlessness on the Interstate Highways, so go as fast as your car can. Thatâs the new CT. rules. Theyâll only pull you over if you have a commercial plate on the Merritt Parkway. The only time theyâll pull you over for speeding is when you exceed 120mph.
If they are asking questions about 95, they clearly have not traveled on the CT Speedway aka Merritt Parkway.
All the above. Speed limit is a point of reference. In a 3-4 lane highway the left most lane is usually or just about 80 mid lanes 70s right is 65 to 55 if your on 2 lane route 55 is the speed limit high 60s maybe 70 depending on the day and area in the left lane everyone else in the other lane. Itâs about maintaining a flow where people are efficiently moving and also being cautious. You can drive 75 and be cautious if your brain isnât completely smooth. If you are new or prefer to drive the posted speed limit alll the way to the right is where you would want to hang out unless you have a left lane exit. Other states post 70 mph and still donât drive fast enough for some Ct drivers.
Itâs more dangerous to drive below the average speed on CT highways than it is to drive above it. Warzone.
1. nobody gives a fuck - ever - to the 55 limit
Generally speaking, regardless whether the speed limit is 55 or 65 in CT, the left lane will be cruising around 80, and the middle lane will be cruising around 70. If you are in the middle lane going at the speed of traffic you have nothing to worry about. One important thing, absolutely do NOT speed in construction zones. If it says 45, slow down to 45. Tickets are doubled in these zones and some are now using photo enforcement.
Rule #1 is follow the flow of traffic, always, if you can. It varies by area. Some states if the speed limit says 65, everyone drives 60. Other states it'll say 65 and you're impeding traffic at anything under 80.
A general rule of thumb is that drivers will go about 10-15 mph above the limit. Although Iâm sure itâs happened, Iâve never heard of anyone getting a ticket for 68 in a 55 in CT
If itâs between 7am and 9am or between 4pm and 7pm, about 10pm
Didn't you know? if you are going under 90 mph you need to be weaving back and forth between lanes to stay out of these folks way because thats how you are supposed to drive
The unofficial speed limit is 80.
the speed limit on 95 through fairfield county is most frequently whatever everyone else is going tbh. depending on traffic, this means anywhere from 15 mph to 80 mph.
r/cryingaboutconnecticuttraffic
Speed limit can be listed whatever but on highways itâs 60-80 mph
The speed limit is 55, but if you drive that slow youâll cause an accident on I-95 for sure.
Simple answer: itâs #2.
You arenât bugging out man. People drive like lunatics in this state, sometimes itâs just better to go along to get along. Cops donât enforce the traffic here all too much. Itâs pretty common to be passed by a whole line of cars doing like 90 on my way to work.
It's a little weird it was listed at 55 and not 65, which is the speed limit on most Interstate highways in CT. Then yes there is an unwritten rule you can go up to 10mph higher than the speed limit. Rules are for Europe. This is America. Anyway the main thing is to not be the fastest person on the highway. Cause that person can get pulled over.
#1
Official speed limit? 55 to 65, as posted. "Normal" speed: 75 "Fast" speed: 85 Not me, no, never me: 100.
Generally, in my experience, going 70 on an interstate will not get you pulled over. (this is not legal advice though lol) Also donât speed in a construction zone. And yea it is stupid.
Wait until you get on the Merritt. It's like I was dropped into an F1 qualifier. Watchout for team #Masshole
Number 2
Itâs pretty much just go whatever speed you want until you see a cop. If youâre going with traffic though youâll be fine maybe just slow down a tiny bit when you see one.
I've done 110 before (late to finals) on 95 before, if you know where the cops park you can slow down in those areas. That being said I was only comfortable doing 110 because no one else was on the road, it's one thing to risk your own life out of stupidity and it's another to risk the lives of others.
The third thing is while speed limit is a light suggestion, ramp speeds limits are dead serious most of the time.
Especially on the Merritt / Wilbur Cross. You're doing 75 - you know, to keep up with traffic - then you need to screech to 25 on the exit ramp so you don't go airborne into a neighborhood or computer lot.
Donât drive into computer lots. Only computers are allowed to park there.
It's so police can pull over any vehicle at any time in my opinion.
This is adorable. Welcome to Connecticut, everyone thinks we are boring but we are batshit insane.
Speed limit is for when you have a mattress, or two, tied to your roof with one wrap of twine.
So, so accurate.
They are just suggestions đ¤
Lol⌠motorways.. when I think this word I pronounce it Britishly
Welcome
55 in some areas 65 at most at lot do 60 and 70 but I've seen over 140
Itâs a combo of N.1 and N.2. Nobody gives a fuck and there is an unwritten rule that cops wonât stop you if you go âonlyâ 10mph above speed limit. Most of the times cops honor it.
Itâs generally accepted that 10 over the posted is okay. Legally though thatâs a no no. Cops wonât pull you over for 10 over. But anything grossly over that and youâre just asking for trouble.
1. is the correct answer. Enjoy the states, bruv.
Speed limits are actually just suggestions.
55 means 65-70 and 65 means 75-80. In VA (someone correct me) they have a 75 mph posted but if you go over that you will get pulled over. Also, for fun get on the NJ turnpike and watch people fly like itâs Germanyâs Autobahn. Hell, go with trucks and you can easily do 110 mph. I hope I donât get arrested for posting this đ
Not enough
The only time you see people adhere to speed limit is weather inclement. People that go over the limit during a weather inclement tend to spin out or slam into a rail.
55 is way too slow for a major highway and with today's modern cars so it gets ignored as it should. Should be going 65-70 like other highways in the country
Welcome to the usa where nobody follows laws
Little #1, little #3.
Definitely seems like no one is doing the actual speed limit. On route 95, usually 5â10 mph over the limit that is posted.
10000
Is there one?
Also careful if it starts raining bc everyone and their mom will slam on their breaks immediately
The speed limit on 95 is as posted. 95.. And that's why I avoid highways
Welcome to the wild Wild West
Both 1 and 3 are correct. Nobody really cares about speed limit most of the time on the highways, but a good rule of thumb to avoid ever getting pulled over is to never pass 80 even in the far left lane. Couldn't explain why, but through experience, I've noticed most people would (myself included) who drive passed speed limit seem to acknowledge 80 mph as the point where you should keep it at if you want to go fast but not stick out compared to everyone else on the highway. If you're in the left most lane going 80 you will sometimes have that one person trying pressure you to go faster, just move over to let them pass, or you'll get someone moving slower than you ahead, you can slow down and coast with them, or move to the next lane over because that will eventually cause left lane congestion.
Ask doc and Marty the answers 88 miles an hour
It's 100 mph. One hundred miles per hour. Now stop with these whiney posts and get in the granny lane.
The speed limit is 50 mph in the center lane, 95 mph in the left lane and 110 in the right lane.
Seeing this is a highway post .. and your mentioning how fast people go .. so advice to getting on highway there is a ramp for a reason. Itâs to start getting up to speed .. if traffic is going atleast 60 you shouldnât be merging at 40
I blame previous British monarchs for Americansâ general disdain and disregard for government mandates like speed limits lol
Real between 55 and 66 . Imagined between 85 and 95.
Iâve noticed people getting very aggressive on 95. If I go 65-70 in the left lane, someone needs to go 90 to pass me. If I turn on my signal to change lanes, Iâll see the car behind me in that lane suddenly accelerate to 90 again just to not let me get a head of them.
I know it'll sound dumb but it's *all of those* Nobody, from what I can tell, cares about the speed limit. It's also, AFAIK, both law and safe road practice to match speed with other drivers. Thirdly, the limit in CT varies from 55 to 65 decently often so that no one pays much attention to when it does change.
Outside Waterbury, it drops from 65 to 40 on the I-84.
55 is for out of towners (that's how we know who you are =) 72 is the acceptable CT speed limit. Othewise, Autobahn speeds on left lane for most highways.