40mph...

Whilst they claim it's to improve safety and lower deaths and all that, it's clear that it's a way in which the motorist will have his wallet lightened further by the government. 40mph on country roads is stupid. Admittedly, there are some where 40mph is dangerous, but there are those where 60mph feels painfully slow. People won't get anywhere at this rate.

40mph is too slow for most rural roads (around my area anyway) and in some areas 60 does feel a little too slow. Also 60 is a limit not a target, I think most people can use their common sense to judge when they are going too fast/slow.

Although introducing the 40mph limit won't make much difference as most of the time I am stuck behind someone doing 40 in a 60 (where it is safe to be doing 60) who then continues at 40 when they enter a 30 zone.

The 60mph limit is fine.

Obviously not read the report but the reason rural roads have the most deaths is fairly obvious:

A) They are poorly policed because there are so many of them.

B) They are the most fun to drive fast on and most people are average to poor drivers

C) They are the most challenging roads. Driving in an urban area is often at low speed (has a high 'damage only' ratio though), and motorway driving is driving straight (although people don't seem to be able to move between lanes very well).

It doesn't need a stupid, irritating headline and a report no doubt lobbied by extremists such as Brake. We just need to scrap national speed limits on all roads single carriageways. 

I have no problem with this on some of the more twisty nasty roads on one condition.  Anyone driving at less than 35mph on a clear dry day is shot in the face.  

You could be the minister for transport when the BNP come to power.

And who put you in charge of the roads? Oh, of course, anyone who drives faster than you is a maniac and anyone who drives slower than you is an imbecile.

I may be wrong, but I think what Adam was trying to say is that there are country roads, "twisty, nasty" ones, where 40 is plenty, and then there are others where it would be painfully slow to travel at 40, such as on a "clear, dry" road. Maybe the 'shooting in the face' bit was over the top (that was probably the point), but I don't think he was saying that anyone faster than him is a maniac and that anyone slower than him is an imbecile.

I thought that Adam's comment was quite humourous it made me smile, I didn't think it would have been taken seriously.

I agree with his underlying point that it is somewhat annoying having to follow someone going much less than the speed limit when it is acceptable to go the limit.

Unfortunately there are a whole lot of drivers out there who think they should decide how fast everyone drives i.e. their speed. Hence they think anyone who drives faster than them is a maniac and anyone who drives slower is an imbecile. People are allowed to drive at any speed they see fit as long as it's within the law and it's not for others to tell them how fast they have to drive. Apart from anything else, on that "clear, dry road" an opportunity to overtake is normally no more than a few minutes away most of the time so what's the big deal. The real danger on the road is the frustrated driver, and frustration is always a result of a lack of self control. And people who lack self control should be on the bus, not behind the wheel.

I agree that anyone can drive at whatever speed they like on a country road. If they're doing 100, I'll probably think they're an idiot and hope they'll get pulled over. If they're doing 20, I'll probably get frustrated if they're holding me up - I think that's natural. But like you said, slow drivers can be overtaken when it's safe to do so, so whilst they may be a bit of a pain, you can deal with them soon enough. I think the key is to not get pissed off, no matter how impatient you feel. Keep calm and you're less likely to crash! Probably.