The illusion of security: why speed limits are only a political maneuver

It starts with a claim that is repeated until it gets the appearance of a truth, although it sounds surprisingly hollow on closer inspection, namely that higher speed almost automatically leads to more accidents, and yet in many cases this claim remains a mere slogan without a sustainable basis, a simple narrative that is easily spreadBecause it is catchy and does not require a differentiated view, while reliable evidence is surprisingly rarely brought into the field and instead works with simplified causalities that do not do justice to the complex reality of road traffic and rather give the impression that a scapegoat is being constructed here, which is supposed to distract from deeper problems

The reality beyond the slogans

A look beyond one’s own borders reveals an image that is hardly consistent with the common narrative, because there are numerous states with strict speed limits on their trunk roads, which still cannot show convincingly better records in traffic accidents or deaths, which is the simple equation of low speed andof high safety, since it shows that accidents cannot be explained monocausally, but are influenced by a large number of factors that remain systematically underexposed in the public debate, because they are not so easy to use politically

The repressed causes

The reality of road traffic is characterized by confusion, sudden changes in the weather, wrong human decisions, unclear traffic situations and moments of carelessness that cannot be eliminated by rigidly limiting the speed, and yet the speed is always declared a central culprit because it is easy toMeasure and sanction, while factors such as poor visibility, wet roads or overwhelmed road users hardly fit into an equally convenient control scheme, resulting in a dangerous shortening of the cause analysis, which is more veiled than educated

The real progress on the road

If the number of serious accident consequences has decreased in many areas, then the cause is not the regulatory joy of government agencies, but in the technical development of the vehicles themselves, because modern constructions, stable passenger compartments, sophisticated restraint systems and ever more precise assistance systems have significantly improved the chances of survival in accidents,And this progress is the result of engineering achievement and not the result of bureaucratic regulations, but the state likes to adorn itself with these successes as if they were a product of its interventions, although in fact it is only on a foundation that others have created

The fairy tale of care

The longer one looks at the argument, the more it becomes clear that the alleged concern for safety often serves as a cover, behind which completely different interests are hidden, because the comprehensive control of the speed by measuring systems is less like a protective mechanism and more like a finely coordinated system for generating income, in which every violationis reliably monetized and results in a constant source of income that has little to do with prevention, but rather takes on the character of a hidden tax that asks the road user to pay while at the same time the moral claim of security is advanced

A state that saves in the wrong places

This imbalance becomes particularly striking when one considers the state of the infrastructure, because while the control of the speed is carried out with great effort, basic measures to improve road safety often do not occur, roads show damage that has not been repaired for a long time, construction sites are dragging on endlessly and turning into permanent onesDangerous areas that disrupt traffic flow and increase the risk of accidents, and bypasses that could relieve places are delayed for years as if their implementation is a tiresome duty and not an urgent need

Danger of standstill

Construction sites that are like open wounds in the road network become a symbol of inactivity, because they often arise quickly, but then remain unnecessarily long and create situations in which ambiguity, tight and sudden lane changes become a daily challenge, which increases the risk, while at the same time creating the impression that less efficiency isRather, indifference prevails, a indifference that contradicts the supposedly so great concern for security

The Ignored Opportunity for Real Security

The disproportion becomes even clearer when one considers that there are hardly any serious incentives to promote particularly safe vehicles, although there is enormous potential for reducing the consequences of accidents, because anyone who acquires a vehicle with modern safety technology acts in the spirit of the general public, but is not rewarded for it, while driving itselfis increasingly regulated and sanctioned, creating a system that does not reward security, but above all monetizes the misconduct

The alleged priority of road safety

In the end, an image remains that is difficult to ignore because it consists of the contradictions themselves, an image in which the alleged priority of road safety is repeatedly refuted by practical decisions, in which simple explanations are suppressed by complex relationships and in which measures are preferred that are easily controllable and financially usable.while more complex but more effective solutions are neglected, and this gives the impression that, while safety is being said aloud, it is in fact a subordinate role in the actual weighting, overlaid by the interest in control and income that is behind euphonious arguments and the road user with the uncomfortable realizationleaves that the official justification is only part of the truth.