Speed limits and Austin 7s

[Bob Culver]

I find it ironic that driving various "moderns" today, including inherited wife's car with a.b.s etc, I drive consistently slower in suburban areas than nearly 60 years ago in the Seven. Here we have unmarked mobile and parked patrol cars with radar, handheld lasers, cameras everywhere, all unnanounced, and rigid enforcement with 100kph open road and 50 kph suburban with recently a myriad other including lower limits. The effect on driving behaviour and the road toll has been dramatic. 60 years ago the dustbin sized radar could be easily spotted and many motorists signalled. And marked patrol cars spotted in the mirror. An inhibiting influence on suburban speeds was the right hand rule requirng yield of row to traffic on the right. Grid layout towns could not be prudently crossed at a steady 30 mph. Cars with Austin style brakes were very harrowing. Now uncontrolled intersections are so rare the rule is forgotten. When traffic was light at night, and any following vehicle obvious, motorists maintained high average speeds by driving through towns unabated.