Earlier this year, I was dining with a coworker when I mentioned a new proposal for speeding fines. Since the potential damage from a speeding vehicle is defined in terms of the kinetic energy, really fines should be based on the delta of the energy from the speed travelled at of the vehicle versus the kinetic energy at the posted speed. This makes the fine proportional to the square of the speed, and directly proportional to the mass. The damage caused by a collision with a speeding motorcycle versus a speeding loaded dump truck are different orders of scale and therefore the fine adjusted accordingly.
Posted by ledlogic at August 30, 2006 11:35 PM