We live in a culture of "fast." From high-speed internet to instant coffee, we are conditioned to believe that saving time is the ultimate virtue. On the road, this translates into a chronic speeding epidemic. Many drivers justify traveling 15-20 km/h over the limit, viewing it as a victimless crime that helps them "make up time." However, the physics of speed tells a different story.
The force of an impact is not linear; it is exponential. As speed increases, the distance required to stop grows significantly, and the energy released in a crash becomes far more destructive. In an urban environment, the "time saved" by speeding is usually negated by the next red light or traffic bottleneck. In reality, a driver speeding through a city usually arrives only seconds earlier than a law-abiding driver, yet they have doubled their risk of a fatal encounter.
True driving excellence is found in patience. Speed limits are not arbitrary suggestions; they are calculated based on the road’s curvature, visibility, and pedestrian density. By choosing to slow down, a driver regains the most valuable safety tool they have: reaction time. In the split second that a child chases a ball into the street, the difference between a "close call" and a tragedy is almost always the number on the speedometer.
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