As reported in the media, the police will be getting stricter on speeding in the holiday season, starting now and running right through until the end of January. They’ll ticket anyone who exceeds the speed limit by more than 4 km/hr, whereas usually they give 10 km/hr leeway. This is “the first time the reduction has been extended beyond a long holiday weekend”. Hence here I have crunched a few numbers on the subject. If a vehicle has to pass safely using the 4km/h grace, we would need a 2.6km (91 seconds) passing lane to complete the passing manoeuvre. Assumptions based on the following:
1. Vehicle being overtaken is travelling at 100km/h.
2. Five metres is the average length of the vehicle.
3. Passing vehicle is to slot 10m in front of the vehicle being passed.
4. Passing vehicle was following a safe three-second following distance prior to commencing the manoeuvre.
I believe overtaking may well need warp speed as the Institute of Advanced Motorists, a UK organisation dedicated to educating drivers to be safer motorists, once told me that when overtaking it is essential to reduce the time exposed to danger and get out and back to my own side of the road as quickly as possible. But in NZ it is exactly when we are doing this, and momentarily exceeding the allotted 4km/h buffer, that the police car comes around the next corner! Yeah right.
