Lighter shoes.
A pedestrian is more likely to suffer considerable injury being hit at 40 mph than at 30 mph
A child has no chance.
I don’t know which year those design rules came in in Europe but you can be sure it was a lot earlier than here however if you are driving an old vehicle then the design rules used to be plus or minus 10% so your speedo could actually be reading low if your car is old enough.
I find those radar warnings they have at road works are fairly accurate so if you don’t have a sat nav then that should give you an idea of how slow or fast your speedo is compared to the real speed if you have an older car. I wouldn’t rely on just one speed warning sign though I’d check it through several.
What is interesting is that the design rules specifically ban sat navs as the car’s installed speedo. At the moment my son is driving using a special sat nav speedo as his only speed indicator because the sensor has failed on his car so the speedo doesn’t work. I presume he will keep it this way until either the police see it and defect his car or the next rego check.
That’s very unfortunate to put it mildly. The same happened to me once but they wouldn’t fine me because the ambulance was caught on camera, too, some seconds later so that the police knew what was happening.
If they had tried to fine me, though, I’d have told them to check with the rescue service which ambulance was on duty at which time on that particular day and they’d have learnt that I was just giving way to it.
You are not allowed to break the law even when you are trying to do the right thing , you cannot let an emergency vehicle past if it means you
Going through a red light
Entering a bus lane
Entering a yellow box junction
Emergency vehicle drivers know you can’t break the law and shouldn’t be sat in a queue at a red light with their sirens and lights going, try not to panic if an emergency vehicle comes up behind you whilst driving, with its lights and sirens going, nor should you speed up resulting in exceeding the speed limit, pull over when it is safe and legal to do so
If they are stationary you must slow down
Easy as…
I’m very ashamed of myself for speeding.
I remember on my last speed awareness course being told you could injure a child if you hit them at 30 mph but if you hit them at 40mph you could kill them.
In my own defense I do not speed in built up areas - only when there’s a clear & open road!
Anyway I’m going to Halfords today to collect a Garmin Drive Smart to control my speeding. It bleeps if I’m going too fast.
Hopefully I won’t be getting any more speeding fines once this little gadget is installed.
Thanks for all your replies & advice.
It may be a good idea to get into the habit of using your speedometer as well, Carol. Better safe than sorry.
That’s as it should be.
But you must realise that Germany is a more logical country than the UK. Our forte is bureaucracy!
So not entering a bus lane takes priority over trying to save some poor sod’s life?
British bureaucracy at its best.
Watch those police documentaries, whilst the police are chasing a criminal and a car gets in their way:
“Come on! Shift! Get across! (into a bus lane)”
and I’m sure ambulance drivers say the same.
But no. The mindless bureaucrats in charge of the cameras don’t give a toss about practicalities or the lives of the public. They have their rules and the rules say you are guilty and you must pay them their fines.
What a country we live in.
Yes of course I glance at it occasionally but in the few minutes between glances my speed could go up by a few miles & I could get caught on camera.
I also believe it’s best to keep my eyes on the road.
Hi
Carol, you are a lovely, caring person, none of us is perfect and loads of people speed every day.
Do not be so hard on yourself.
I would echo swimmys comments, it is so very easy to stray slightly over the speed limit and get caught by a camera it doesn’t mean you are reckless or a bad driver, if you are doing 35 in a 30 ,you are within the law, if you are doing 36 your not, I doubt it would make any significant difference if you hit someone ( god forbid)
If you think so…But isn’t Germany notorious for its red tape, too?
In winter I had expensive passport photos taken at 27 quid when being caught speeding at 19 mph where only 12.4 mph were allowed. I was daydreaming and envisioning the most beautiful things and then bang.
Novelty: There's hardly any other place on earth where the speed limit is 12.4 mph. The traffic sign for it is hardly known. The lowest standard speed limit is 18.6 mph.
I ran into a stationary speed trap put in place just recently. I'd read about it but thought to myself that I wasn't very likely ever to drive there anyway. But then there was a detour and I followed it and was taken entirely by surprise. The admin guy in charge said in an interview that that speed camera proved to be "highly profitable." Well, I like donations and make them regularly. The city needs them badly.
What sort of a place has speed limits of 12.4 mph?
A cemetery? 
I was “done” for speeding last month.I had a choice of a fine and points on my license,a court appearance or a speed awareness course-I choose the on line course.
It costs £88 and I’ll be doing it a week tomorrow at 11.15.
Don’t know what to expect.
You might have to do it online, if you do, make sure you don’t have anyone in the house, or keep them quiet if you do, certainly don’t have anyone in the same room, that’s an instant fail and you will get a fine and points
Marge and I have both been on one.
They’re quite friendly and informative. In fact, you can learn a lot from them.
Of course, it might be different in Wales. They might pull your fingernails out one by one just to teach you a lesson.
A hospital.
@rhosyn wrote:
“I was “done” for speeding last month.I had a choice of a fine and points on my license,a court appearance or a speed awareness course-I choose the on line course.
It costs £88 and I’ll be doing it a week tomorrow at 11.15.
Don’t know what to expect.”
(Sorry, I can quote with the editor right now. Happens every now and then.)
Hard choices. How much would the fine have been?
Sorry again. Should have been “I can’t quote…”:twisted: