Driving at 140 km/h is not only illegal and unsafe but also ultimately pointless, as revealed by a mathematician.
A Portuguese math teacher, who also shares insights on his Instagram page smartickmetodo, explained that exceeding the speed limit does not significantly reduce the time it takes to reach your destination.
The advantage gained is minimal compared to the countless risks involved.
Understanding this significantly promotes respect for speed limits and the application of mathematical calculations in everyday life.
The 140 km/h threshold chosen by the teacher generally corresponds to a prohibited speed.
However, the example can be applied to any case of exceeding the limits set by the Highway Code.
Let’s find out why.
The smartick method teacher explained the mathematical calculation to understand how much time is saved by increasing speed.
He took into consideration the 120 km/h limit set on Portuguese highways and a 20 km/h exceedance, resulting in a speed of 140 km/h.
The calculation is not complex, but it may not be intuitive in everyday life due to confusion generated by using the wrong parameters.
Everyone knows that at 60 km/h, it takes 60 seconds to cover each kilometer.
By doubling the speed and driving at 120 km/h, the time is halved: only 30 seconds are needed for each kilometer.
In this case, time savings are significant simply because the speed has doubled.
Sticking to the limit, however, results in a not so different speed that does not offer any advantage.
Let’s delve into how much time is needed to cover a kilometer at different speeds to better understand:
In Portugal, the highway speed limit is generally 120 km/h.
It is possible to respect it and travel at a maximum speed that allows covering each kilometer in 30 seconds or exceed it and save only 4.3 or 7.5 seconds per kilometer (respectively when driving at 140 km/h or 160 km/h).
In Italy, the situation is even worse, as in the vast majority of cases, the speed limit on highways is set at 130 km/h.
At this speed, it takes 27.7 seconds for each kilometer, so driving at 140 km/h only saves 2 seconds per kilometer.
It is evident that by further exceeding the limit, the advantage on timing increases, but before experiencing any real benefits, one would reach unheard-of speeds, well beyond 200 km/h.
The same principle can be applied to other roads, taking into account the extreme danger of doubling the speed compared to what is allowed, which is mostly impractical.
Moreover, increasing speed exponentially raises the risk of road accidents, and fines become progressively higher, as outlined in article 142 of the Highway Code:
Penalties increase in various cases, such as recurrence or road accidents, but in any case, they could soon become harsher due to the Highway Code reform.
Read also: Highway Code Reform, the Most Important News
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