How fast do you drive on the expressway?

[Mr. Illini]

Tried to leave the intervals fairly large since I know it varies.

I'm certainly almost always in the 15-30 over range. Our speed limits on rural expressways are now 70 in Illinois, and I usually cruise between 80-85 on those, sometimes pushing to 90. Chicago expressways are a racetrack (despite 55mph speed limits and on the Dan Ryan, 45), and when they're open I usually keep between 70 and 80.

[Franzl]

Depends. On those portions of the Autobahn that have speed limits, normally about 10-20 km/h over.

On rural US interstates, if at all possible, around 20 mph over.

[Flake]

You do not want to speed in Florida.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Depends.  Urban expressways I'll usually go the speed limit. Rural expressways I'll go anywhere from 8 mph under to 4 mph over.  Rural interstates here have a speed limit of 70 mph.  But for fuel economy reasons, I try to go only 100 km/h. (Roughly 62 mph, and I choose that because it usually keeps me from being the same speed as other slower drivers.)  However, if I'm running short on time because I got delayed either before setting out or while driving, I'm willing to go 120 km/h on the rural interstates.  That ability to still make it someplace on time when delayed is another reason for planning on 100 km/h.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

You do not want to speed in Florida.

^^^

If the speed limit is 65, I never go above 70-75.

[memphis]

Depends.  Urban expressways I'll usually go the speed limit. Rural expressways I'll go anywhere from 8 mph under to 4 mph over.  Rural interstates here have a speed limit of 70 mph.  But for fuel economy reasons, I try to go only 100 km/h. (Roughly 62 mph, and I choose that because it usually keeps me from being the same speed as other slower drivers.)  However, if I'm running short on time because I got delayed either before setting out or while driving, I'm willing to go 120 km/h on the rural interstates.  That ability to still make it someplace on time when delayed is another reason for planning on 100 km/h.

You are endangering your life to potentially save $1 in gasoline. Excessively slow drivers (anything below the limit in normal conditions) are such a menace.

[J-Mann]

The safest thing to do is to keep up with the flow of traffic. If it's going slower, go with it. If it's going faster, go with it.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Depends.  Urban expressways I'll usually go the speed limit. Rural expressways I'll go anywhere from 8 mph under to 4 mph over.  Rural interstates here have a speed limit of 70 mph.  But for fuel economy reasons, I try to go only 100 km/h. (Roughly 62 mph, and I choose that because it usually keeps me from being the same speed as other slower drivers.)  However, if I'm running short on time because I got delayed either before setting out or while driving, I'm willing to go 120 km/h on the rural interstates.  That ability to still make it someplace on time when delayed is another reason for planning on 100 km/h.

You are endangering your life to potentially save $1 in gasoline. Excessively slow drivers (anything below the limit in normal conditions) are such a menace.

Not really.  I'm at the slow end of the bell curve of drivers here, but I'm not well below it and I do regularly pass drivers doing only 60 mph.  The speed limits on the interstates here are by and large the maximum safe speeds anyway. (There is a curve on I-26 at it's junction with I-20 and I-126 that does have regular accidents because of out-of-state drivers who aren't aware of that fact.)   Plus, I'm not an Italian race car driver and I rarely drive late at night, so I'm not a candidate for being rear ended.

Also, keep in mind that South Carolina was not laid out on the square township system common to most of the US west of the Appalachians.  Long straight flat stretches of road are simply not to be found.

[King]

We don't really have an expressway in ABQ. The closest would be Paseo Del Norte, which has a speed limit of 65 but is technically a road with stoplights (no pedestrians allowed due to speed). Everyone goes about 80 on it anyway.

[dead0man]

I'm at the slow end of the bell curve of drivers here, but I'm not well below it and I do regularly pass drivers doing only 60 mph.

I hope you at least accelerate when you do that so as not to spend 3 minutes passing the guy.  Few things piss me off as much as left lane cruisers.

As for the OP.  Generally 15-30 over.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I'm at the slow end of the bell curve of drivers here, but I'm not well below it and I do regularly pass drivers doing only 60 mph.

I hope you at least accelerate when you do that so as not to spend 3 minutes passing the guy.  Few things piss me off as much as left lane cruisers.

Most drivers slower than me are on cruise control at 60 or even 55 so my chosen speed means that's rarely a problem and if it is I'll speed up a little to pass, or maybe briefly slow down until I can pass at my usual 100 kph without inconveniencing another driver.  If there's too many drivers, I can't really be on cruise control anyway.

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

I'm honestly surprised I've never got a ticket.  I sometimes go 100 in a 70 mph highway (usually when there aren't a lot of other cars.

[Tender Branson]

There's usually a speed limit of either 80 km/h (50 mph) or 100 km/h (62 mph) on non-autobahns here (in many parts of Tyrol, there's also a 60 km/h speed limit on rural roads (37 mph), which is annoying).

So, despite there being 50-62 mph speed limits on rural main roads, I usually want to drive faster than that (about 10-20 mph faster).

But you simpy can't.

Why ?

Because of all the traffic during the day. Between 6 and 9am, there's the morning traffic. People are still half asleep and drive slowly, which piles up all the cars. You cannot overtake because the traffic is too heavy on the other side as well.

Then during the day, it's not much different because of all the lorries which are driving really slowly and pile up the cars behind them.

And then, between 5pm and 8pm there's the evening traffic.

And during tourism seasons (June to Septemer, December to April) it's the worst: Loads of slow-driving Germans, Dutch, Eastern-Europeans, Arabs etc. clogging the rural streets and driving like snails because the German Olaf tells his wife "Oh, honey look how wonderful the landscape here is, let's drive only 10 mph on a 62 mph road and look at all the nice landscape !".

The only sane months in rural western-Austria to drive are May, October and November, when all the friggin tourists are gone. And at night. Then you can drive also above the speed limit for a few miles, without bumping into some snail on the road.

[memphis]

Is the German Olaf a widespread stereotype? I would like to hear more about him.

[Sopranos Republican]

In Mass on I-95 (in my area) the speed limit is 65, and I almost always do 80-85. There are cops, but unless you are doing over 90 AT LEAST they'll generally let you go. When you get into Middlesex county the limit is 55, but people in the fast lane still do 80+ and rarely get pulled over. In Rhode Island the limit drops to 50 and 45 mph on I-95, and the flow of traffic rarely allows you to drop below 70.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

When 295/the turnpike say 55 MPH: 15-30
When 295/the turnpike say 65 MPH: 0-15

I'm consistently around 70-75.

[Wake Me Up When The Hard Border Ends]

At or below the speed limit (don't go into the fast lane except when I have to, plus I'm very rulebound.)

[Cranberry]

Is the German Olaf a widespread stereotype? I would like to hear more about him.

I have never heard anyone call a German Olaf, I would think more of a Norwegian or Swede with that name.
If anything, I would call a German Karl-Friedrich (You know why, Tender? )
But Germans aren't really associated with a name here in Austria... Just calling him Deitscher ("German" in dialect) is enough, Piefke if he is even more typically German (over-accurate, over-punctual, humorless, the whole lot) and you like him even less than your average one

[Smash255]

Most speed limits around here are 55 mph.  I pretty much go in the flow of traffic, whether its bumper to bumper or going above the speed limit.  I'm not one of those who constantly change lanes, though I will if I am going behnd drivers going slower than the flow of traffic.  75-80 mph is what I will usually go if the traffic is light enough, (which isn't that often on Long Island unless pretty late at night) although I will push 85-90 or so at times.

[Bojack Horseman]

Usually around 80-85. I just keep up with traffic, which is usually way faster than the speed limit.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

As fast as I think I can get away with it without being cited.  Since I've never had a ticket in 39 years, probably too slow for others.

[Tender Branson]

Is the German Olaf a widespread stereotype? I would like to hear more about him.

I just picked some name out of the hat ...

[TNF]

I only speed if I'm running late. And even then, I don't go more than 5 mph higher than the speed limit.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

I only speed if I'm running late. And even then, I don't go more than 5 mph higher than the speed limit.

It's not really speeding unless it's more than 5 above the speed limit.

[Mr. Illini]

I only speed if I'm running late. And even then, I don't go more than 5 mph higher than the speed limit.

1) Have you driven on the Chicago expressways since you moved up here?
2) If so, did you go 55 on those expressways?
3) If so, you're both the worst person ever and lucky your car is ok.