Standardize speed limit signs on highways to make traffic safer and more fluid-Comment-Beijing News



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▲ Irregularities in the design of speed limit signs on highways exist not only on expressways, but also on other general roads, you cannot lose sight of the other when implementing the regulations. Data map. Image Source: Beijing News

Speed ​​limit signs on highways are important facilities to ensure road traffic safety and guide vehicles to drive smoothly. However, situations like highway high and low speed limit value, chaotic speed limit signs, and too short distance between speed limit signs can not only cause vehicle violations, but also distract the owner. of the car and affect safe driving. To this end, the Ministry of Transportation recently issued the “Code for the Design of Speed ​​Limit Signs on Highways”, which details the division of speed limit sections on roads, the demonstration of speed limit values ​​and the speed limit method selection, to be implemented on November 1, 2020.

The freeway speed limit value drops too fast, high and low; speed limit signs are chaotic and hidden; the distance between speed limit signs is too close … With the continuous improvement of the road network in China, the problem of insufficient standardization of road speed limit signs is also arousing more attention from the society. As noted in the “Code for the Design of Highway Speed ​​Limit Signs”, the scientific framework and reasonable standardization of highway speed limit signs are related to the vital interests of highway users and affect directly traffic safety and operational efficiency. The implementation of the new regulations consists of patching security and efficiency in this regard.

The design of speed limit signs on highways is not standardized, in fact, it is mainly divided into two parts. One part is that the speed limit is not reasonable. The most common phenomenon is that the speed limit is too low or a “roller coaster speed limit”. Not only does it affect the efficiency of traffic on the roads, but it can also cause new risks to road safety, which go against the safety requirements of the speed limit itself. For example, some drivers and passengers recently reported that speed limits on certain sections of expressways in Shandong Province are not standardized, speed limits in some sections are unreasonably set, and speed limit standards in some Sections fluctuate up and down, causing some drivers to have a headache. The new regulations clearly require that the difference between the speed limit values ​​of two adjacent speed limit sections should not exceed 20 km / h. This is a direct response to this phenomenon.

The other part concerns whether the speed limit signs are scientifically established. For example, speed limit signs are few, not conspicuous enough, and abnormal speed limit warning signs have not been raised, etc., which belong to the category that requires regulation. In this sense, the new regulations require that at the end of the speed limit section, a new speed limit sign or raised speed limit sign be established; the speed limit sign must be posted at the beginning of the speed limit section and repeated as necessary; the speed limit sign must not be The trees on the edge of the road, structures along the line and other traffic signs and other obstructed facilities, etc., are “the proper medicine”.

However, it is worth noting that compared to improving the scientific setting of the speed limit sign, in order to make the speed limit setting more reasonable, other support work is necessary. It should be noted that some of the “hidden rules” of “lowering as much as possible” and engaging in “sudden attacks” are not out of the question to serve the “penalty economy” and are a means of “undercover charges” by relevant departments. In other words, if the controversial practice of using fines as the basis for assessment cannot be effectively changed, and the road speed limit is truly brought back within the scope of scientific and safety considerations, it is likely to be faced. to the problem of insufficient motivation to enforce the law.

In fact, in the real context, the phenomenon of insufficient standardization of speed limit signs on roads is often not a problem of ability and cognition, but rather a deviation in the concept of traffic management and enforcement of the law. Because under normal circumstances, speed limits on highways follow the universal standard, that is, “normal speed limits are the norm and abnormal speed limits are exceptions.” However, our “exceptions” seem to be too many, so they have become a major problem that needs to be addressed. In fact, there is a lot to do with the undue influence of law enforcement interests. Therefore, trying to regulate speed limit irregularities is essentially to curb the leniency and rigor of traffic law enforcement. It is a uniform standard of law enforcement and should even rise to the level of maintaining the credibility of local governments.

Therefore, in the process of implementing the new regulations, all relevant localities and departments must, on the one hand, see the deep-seated problems behind them, and not just make timely improvements to some obvious problems according to the regulations. . For example, many places have canceled unreasonable speed limits on freeways. It is also necessary to reflect on the internal reasons that lead to the problem, in order to compensate for the irregularities of the speed limit signs; On the other hand, for the implementation of the regulation, the relevant departments should also establish a “look back” procedure and unblock the channels of supervision and social feedback, such as what Local speed limits are not reasonable and the answer more intuitive it can be obtained with the help of illegal big data.

Finally, it is necessary to remember that the design of speed limit signs on highways is not standardized, not only on expressways, but also on other general roads, and one should not lose sight of the other when implementing regulations. Taking the opportunity to standardize speed limit signs, it is also possible to make inferences from each other. In the case of unreasonable road design and other issues that are also related to efficiency and traffic safety, an optimization package can be made to make road traffic really safer and more fluid.

Editor: He Rui Review:

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