Gov't wants to lower speed limits for trucks

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Originally Posted By: xxch4osxx
Originally Posted By: Danno
We have had speed limit laws for big rigs in Ontario for 5 years governed to 65 mph. Rigs slowed down for a few years, but are back at same speeds as before now. The law is unenforceable.
Just a PR stunt to show the govt is doing something.
That 105kph law got ruled as unconstitutional and thrown out a year or two ago. The boss took the limiter off our trucks a while ago, thankfully.


http://ontruck.org/ontario-court-of-justice-upholds-speed-limiter-rule/


Ummm... no.

I guess you folks are running illegal - huh?
 
Not sure on the logic of lower truck speed limits leading to less mobile road blocks...just slower ones.

Speed limiters were installed in OZ, and as a result the road blocks were more frustrating, as they had zero ability to get out of their own way so to speak.

Our road toll is high this year also, and they are cracking down on trucks.

Driving to the next town (Sydney side), We drive through 4 fixed speed cameras (get everybody), and two time of flight zones that only target trucks (at the moment)...go the other way (Bathurst), and there's a time of flight (again trucks only ATM).

End result is that the trucks crawl through these zones.

Then sail through the red lights here in town at 50MPH.

I know which one I'd prefer them to be focussing on.
 
'When there is more than two lanes on a freeway, semis are supposed to stay in the right two lanes,'

^ This is not always the case. ^ Especially in heavily traveled urban areas. I-95 through Richmond, Va has NO restricted lanes.
 
IMO this issue isn't truck speeds but the hours that the drivers are putting in. Trucking companies work thin margins and the longer the driver spends time driving the more money the trucking company can earn.
 
It would be terriable. You need to run hard at hills when you have a load on. This would prevent this. Alot of companies have this, but mostly in the flat states. Trucks have had this option for a long time. I bought a 1998 Ford Louisville and it was set at the factory to 60 mph. I had it removed and had it disabled. It has no governors speed. The truck was geared for 92 at 2250. Ordering trucks is not like cars. You have to get into gearing and ratios. You get the gearing for whatever. The speed control is part of the engine governoron computerised trucks. Alot of trucks would get geared for 68 mph. I went with 92 mph to keep the engine, a 525 Cummins, in the sweet spot of 1650 rpm at 65 mph. 92 mph was at 2250 rpm, but the truck actually would tack up to 2450 rpm. Which was high, but wouldn't hurt the motor if you didn't push it. I am only one that drove it. The speed odometer only went to 85, but it was easy to just drop it off. That was a fast truck, I miss it.
 
Originally Posted By: gman2304
'When there is more than two lanes on a freeway, semis are supposed to stay in the right two lanes,'

^ This is not always the case. ^ Especially in heavily traveled urban areas. I-95 through Richmond, Va has NO restricted lanes.


When I went through truck driving school our instructors said that semis should stick to the right two lanes, even when laws permit them to travel in the left lanes, and when there is more than 2 lanes, semis should only be in the far left lane in an emergency situation, and overtaking other semis is not an emergency...
 
Originally Posted By: Danno
Originally Posted By: xxch4osxx
Originally Posted By: Danno
We have had speed limit laws for big rigs in Ontario for 5 years governed to 65 mph. Rigs slowed down for a few years, but are back at same speeds as before now. The law is unenforceable.
Just a PR stunt to show the govt is doing something.
That 105kph law got ruled as unconstitutional and thrown out a year or two ago. The boss took the limiter off our trucks a while ago, thankfully.


http://ontruck.org/ontario-court-of-justice-upholds-speed-limiter-rule/


Ummm... no.

I guess you folks are running illegal - huh?
There are many companies who have taken the limiters off their trucks. We are far from the only ones.
 
^ When I went through truck driving school our instructors said that semis should stick to the right two lanes, even when laws permit them to travel in the left lanes, and when there is more than 2 lanes, semis should only be in the far left lane in an emergency situation, and overtaking other semis is not an emergency... ^

Yeah, I-95 at 5:30 pm and half of the traffic is jockeying to get to the next exit, and the other half is jockeying to make room for traffic to merge onto the highway. The speed limit is 55-60 through Richmond and Petersburg, a distance of 32 miles, and the non restricted left lane is obviously the safest lane for an 80,000 lb truck....even our safety dept tells us it's the safest lane to be in during heavy rush hour traffic. I've had Va state troopers follow me in the left lane through the most congested sections with nary a peep. When I'm in a line of vehicles, and keeping up with and not impeding the flow of traffic, the impatient people behind me just want to occupy the part of the highway I happen to be in, even though they won't get to their destination any faster if I were to move over to another far more chaotic lane.
 
Originally Posted By: xxch4osxx
Originally Posted By: Danno
Originally Posted By: xxch4osxx
Originally Posted By: Danno
We have had speed limit laws for big rigs in Ontario for 5 years governed to 65 mph. Rigs slowed down for a few years, but are back at same speeds as before now. The law is unenforceable.
Just a PR stunt to show the govt is doing something.
That 105kph law got ruled as unconstitutional and thrown out a year or two ago. The boss took the limiter off our trucks a while ago, thankfully.


http://ontruck.org/ontario-court-of-justice-upholds-speed-limiter-rule/


Ummm... no.

I guess you folks are running illegal - huh?
There are many companies who have taken the limiters off their trucks. We are far from the only ones.


Doesn't make it legal though. If you DO get caught (which is rare of course) the fines are significant:

Ontario Commercial Vehicle Operation Requirements - MTO

Originally Posted By: MTO

Truck speed limiters

By law, most large trucks driven in Ontario and Quebec are required to use electronic speed limiters that cap their speed at 105 km/h. This applies to commercial motor vehicles that:
were built after December 31, 1994
are equipped with an electronic control module
AND
have a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of 11,794 kg or more.
Exemptions apply only to a limited number of vehicle types, such as ambulances or fire trucks.


Originally Posted By: MTO
Commercial vehicle drivers and companies that fail to comply with many of these requirements may be fined up to $20,000.
 
Originally Posted By: dlundblad
How many fatal non-heavy truck crashes happen per year?

I don't see how limiting their top speed will solve anything.

This won't stop the ones that run red lights on the highway or speed through a 45.

This problem isn't limited to just semis although driving an 80,000 lb vehicle requires additional responsibility, hence the need for a CDL, IMO.



Perhaps if they quit paying bottom-of-the-barrel rates (and attracting like-wise drivers...)
whistle.gif
 
Originally Posted By: grampi
Originally Posted By: Bud
People will drive at whatever speed they want. Doesn't matter what the speed limit is, and never has. They will risk a ticket, no problem. Government knows lower speed limits will not work, but it makes it look like they are doing something.


Thing is, speed limits would work if they were enforced...


I agree, but States do not have the funds to hire the additional police it would take to do the job properly. Just will never happen. When I am on the interstate I set my cruise 5 over the posted limit and I am usually the slowest person on the road.
 
Originally Posted By: WobblyElvis
I'm sure that I am in the minority here but I would lower the max limit to 60mph for everyone and enforce it. Safer and less fuel consumption, cleaner air. In my opinion.



Open your tub faucet full-bore. Okay, that's a nice healthy speed. Now turn it down to a trickle.

Which one of these two faucet positions do you believe will fill the tub up quicker?

Hint: The tub basin represents the TOTAL amount of traffic you're trying to move, in a given period of time.
wink.gif
 
Originally Posted By: Bud
Originally Posted By: grampi
Originally Posted By: Bud
People will drive at whatever speed they want. Doesn't matter what the speed limit is, and never has. They will risk a ticket, no problem. Government knows lower speed limits will not work, but it makes it look like they are doing something.


Thing is, speed limits would work if they were enforced...


I agree, but States do not have the funds to hire the additional police it would take to do the job properly.


They would if they started ticketing all of the speeders...
 
Originally Posted By: gman2304
^ When I went through truck driving school our instructors said that semis should stick to the right two lanes, even when laws permit them to travel in the left lanes, and when there is more than 2 lanes, semis should only be in the far left lane in an emergency situation, and overtaking other semis is not an emergency... ^

Yeah, I-95 at 5:30 pm and half of the traffic is jockeying to get to the next exit, and the other half is jockeying to make room for traffic to merge onto the highway. The speed limit is 55-60 through Richmond and Petersburg, a distance of 32 miles, and the non restricted left lane is obviously the safest lane for an 80,000 lb truck....even our safety dept tells us it's the safest lane to be in during heavy rush hour traffic. I've had Va state troopers follow me in the left lane through the most congested sections with nary a peep. When I'm in a line of vehicles, and keeping up with and not impeding the flow of traffic, the impatient people behind me just want to occupy the part of the highway I happen to be in, even though they won't get to their destination any faster if I were to move over to another far more chaotic lane.


If that stretch of highway is 4 lanes, then I agree that it's okay for the semis to run in the left lane...if it's more than 4 lanes, semis should NOT be in the far left lane...in that case, they should be using the center lane...
 
It's 6 [six] lanes. It's legal.....Google it! Geez!!!!! Going through there this afternoon....I'll take you a picture!
 
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So for discussion sake, what is the maximum speed limit in Ontario? From what I can tell, it is 100 km/h. So the governor on the truck is set at 5 km/h over the maximum speed limit.

That argument is different than setting the governor at 60/65/68 when speed limits in many parts of the US are at 75 mph or higher. Setting differential speeds just does not seem like a smart idea...

The governor thing may also explain why most of the Canadian trucks I see here are licensed in Manitoba...
 
Originally Posted By: Danno
We have had speed limit laws for big rigs in Ontario for 5 years governed to 65 mph. Rigs slowed down for a few years, but are back at same speeds as before now. The law is unenforceable.
Just a PR stunt to show the govt is doing something.
Placate the idiots?
 
Originally Posted By: MNgopher
So for discussion sake, what is the maximum speed limit in Ontario? From what I can tell, it is 100 km/h. So the governor on the truck is set at 5 km/h over the maximum speed limit.

That argument is different than setting the governor at 60/65/68 when speed limits in many parts of the US are at 75 mph or higher. Setting differential speeds just does not seem like a smart idea...

The governor thing may also explain why most of the Canadian trucks I see here are licensed in Manitoba...

The enforced speed limit is 20km/h over the posted and that's what 80-90% of people go, so the governor on the trucks enforces about a 10mph difference. I don't know if the accident stats have changed much since the speed limiter was put in, but to me atleast it seems to have calmed down the truckers and you don't get them weaving and passing trying to maintain 120km/h like some used to.
 
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