“The entire idea of safe driving is to not take risks: not take risks with speed, with inattention, with alcohol. Speeding is just a symptom of poor respect for others, of selfishness and an inability to accept responsibility.”

You’ve got it Hamlet. But unfortunately without a very good policing regime most people will not get the message, until they have a serious accident. Driver-training should be greatly improved to concentrate on risk factors and safety margins, but even with the best training, in the absence of comprehensive policing, most (or many) people just won’t comply.

“The answer is: we have to be doing AT LEAST 10% over the speed limit before we can be booked”.

Jinx, I have been told the same thing by police officers. But I have also been told that police can book anyone for doing any speed over the limit if they wish. And I believe they do book people for doing less than 10ks over in 40k school zones…. sometimes. The uncertainty and duplicity stinks. There is absolutely no reason why the Qld Govt can’t tell us just exactly what the go is with speed limits.

“There is no such thing as tailgating”

Person with the really silly pseudonym, you have GOT to be kidding!! It sounds to me as though you have completely no idea about basic safety margins and risk factors and therefore DO NOT deserve to hold a drivers licence! I endorse Hamlet’s response and share his/her depth of feeling on the matter.

Rex, I have shared your experience with trucks tailgating on the highway. They know they can get away with 10ks over the limit, so they set their speed right on 110 in the 100 k zone, which means they are constantly coming up behind other traffic, and just intimidating to the max. Not all truckies but a large portion of them do this.

You received interesting advice from the police. I have received quite different advice regarding just the same thing – to maintain constant speed, don’t flash your brakelights or give other signals and pull off when you can if you feel too pressured, or on a different occasion, speed up regardless of the speed limit which is ok if you are feeling threatened! This second piece of was given to me in very firm fashion and reinforced by a second officer. But it was later completely condemned by other officers. The police clearly don’t have any idea. The Dept of Transport and the RACQ are no better.

What makes it worse is that you cannot report things like this to the police, because they are completely disinterested unless an accident has occurred, or perhaps when you are placed under a grave threat if you really push the point.. and tailgating is not considered to be a grave threat.

What it makes it much worse is that it just isn’t policed.

And what makes it worse still is that complete non-policing of this aspect of road safety, as with many others, effectively means that the police are condoning this behaviour and therefore essentially training drivers to do it.

Silly pseudonym, you wrote:

“It does sound to me that some people are more concerned aboout whats going on behind them rather than in front.”

For goodness sake, you really do need to do a basic driver-training course don’t you, let alone a detailed defensive driving course.

Are you suggesting that drivers should not be aware of what is happening behind them, and be sensitive to the infringement of safety margins therein? Or that they should just ignore wank.rs who impose themselves up their exhaust pipe?

Immediate action is in order when confronted with a tailgating idiot. Firstly, flashing your brakelights. If that fails, putting your arm out the window and waving them back and then gently slowing down in front of them and accelerating back to normal speed. If all of that fails, then you are perfectly entitled to decrease your speed to the point at which you feel is appropriate for the distance between your car and the turd behind you.

If you are subjected to dangerous antics, then you owe it to yourself and your passengers to slow down and reduce the risk. You are not obliged to pull off and let them have the road, although you can if you feel that that is the safest course of action.

“Best advised to do your own thing and maintain a consistent course and speed, and not see oneself as the arbiter of traffic eregulations.”

And just accept the ongoing heightened risk of the clot behind you running into you if you need to hit the brakes or even slow down unexpectedly. Brilliant advice.

“Please dont choose me to play silly buggers with me on the road, its dangerous and illegal.”

Please don’t play silly buggers by tailgating, or following more closely than a two-second gap between passing the same point as the vehicle in front of you under ideal conditions, and longer at night or on wet roads.

Tailgating or following too closely is dangerous. And it is illegal, as it demonstrates failure to show due care and courtesy to other road users.

Do you think my pseudonym is silly...compared to what?
Somehow I've become the voice of tailgating enthusiasts which is of course a great honour and privileage.
But I digress...No such thing as tailgating was a statement to highlight that the concept is a product of a drivers perception that a factor they cannot control i.e. the "tailgator" is a menace to them, and that by slowing down or flashing lights or even waving of arms will somehow restore law and order. The other week, there was this huge truck less than a carlength behing me and I was not dilly dallying. It surprised me a bit that he could keep up that well. This went for perhaps 30k's, each overtaking area I kept left and the truck chose not to overtake. It really isn't a drama to just keep doing your own thing...I'm sure you'l get the hang of it one day.
A defensive driving course might be a nice way to meet new people and have some fun, but I'll stick to speedway racing thanks.
The issue of speed cameras is dear to me also, they distract attention away from more important things. More should be done to repair roads and educate drivers (all of us!), and less reliance on speeding revenue.
Instead of getting wound up, people should smile and wave like simpletons. This solution actually works, believe me.

Speed does kill especailly when things go wrong. But the thing most people dont realise is that while big brother is watching he is doing so for big bucks.
He does not test speed cameras properly. He uses unacredited laboratories to do so. The should be accredited by NMI also known as the National Measurement Institute. They do not have any accreditation and also they do not do the tests as required and specified by the manufacturers. Result your mobile phone can set them of. Nearly same frequency. Are the tested for this? NO! Do they use the manufacturers specifications to test ? NO again... Are there any accredited speedometer testers in Australia ? No! you are all being called suckers... And youre letting them do it. Suggest you check these facts ...No one can legally use the evidence from speed cameras in court. They are using illegal means! How do I know? Look up Jerry Simaotas and speed cameras using Google. Also watch this space and Heidelberg court in last day of May. Im fighting my 64 KMPH fine.
Are you people going to stand up for your rights too. Its under the constitution. State laws are nullified if they conflict with federal laws. Weights and measures, is under federal law...The states, They do not have the jurisdiction to do their own testing nor change this basic law. A measure remains true and even state governments have to comply.... Yippeee!! Big brother had better learn to measure correctly... Traceability and compliance with the manufacturers tests is all I ask...

GET OVER IT EVERYONE IT’S VERY EASY IF YOU DON’T WANT TO PAY A FINE DON’T SPEED IT’S THAT EASY.

If everyone one drove below the speed limit then we would have less accidents that is unquestionable logic would it stop all accidents no, and guess what we a laws and penalties for those other causes of accidents to. People agreeing with this Author have never had a loved one taken away from them be a speeding motorist. They could even be under the stupid belief that they are good drivers and it wouldn’t happen to them.
I suspect that the author is a habitual speeder and is sick of getting speeding fines but rather then slow down he wishes to reduce the impact on his wallet rather then any impact with someone else.