Cars, bikes, vans and lorries are all safer now than they’ve ever been. So is it time to change the UK national speed limit"

Before 1965, when the government introduced the 70mph speed limit on motorways, you could drive as fast as you liked on them. Although not many people did, because most cars in the late ?50s and early ?60s didn?t go very fast. Some did though, and there were some accidents, so on the 22nd December 1965, the 70mph speed limit was introduced as a temporary experiment.

A few years later, in 1967, they decided to implement the 70mph limit on motorways, as well as the 60mph national speed limit on single carriageways.

60mph and 70mph limits were probably fairly appropriate in the ?60s. In fact, 60mph in a car back then would probably have felt quite dangerous, never mind 70mph. You didn?t have air bags or crumple zones, you were probably on old drum brakes and unlikely to have been wearing a seatbelt (the seatbelt law didn?t come in until 1983). So it?s no surprise that plenty of people, according to a recent poll, would prefer to see the speed limit increased. And to be honest, I think I?m one of them.
NCAP

Everything about vehicles, roads and drivers is a lot safer now than it was 35 years ago. Let?s consider a typical car now, compared to one from the ?60s. Whilst a modern car ought to be capable of going faster, you can?t really say that makes it any more dangerous, as we?re only allowed to drive them at 70mph anyway. ...