How brave is that? I can't begin to imagine any political party trying this in the UK. It really would be suicide, we love our speeding here.

It's time for all nations to boldly address oil depletion and global warming as the grave threats they really are. The sooner and more decisively we act, the greater savings we incur in monetary terms as well as in planetary stability, and all aspects of our health, happiness, prosperity and security.

It's time to listen to our best and brightest scientists instead of acting on what's politically expedient. The science now tells us we must quickly cut carbon emissions and return to a level of carbon in the atmosphere which is no higher than 350 ppm. We are currently at 387 ppm and rising. Arctic and Greenland ice is melting at an alarming rate sending us a most clear alarm that we have passed the redline for planetary safety. We must do whatever is necessary to return to the 350 level for safety and stability. Only then will we have a future we can look forward to.

I suggest the governments of the world declare SIESTA a basic human right! Think of the AC we'd save!

Great news.
Hopefully the rest of Europe and the US will swiftly adopt Spain's lead. The UK speed limit should not exceed 50mph and enforcement must be total. The current 70mph is really 80mph as the police ignore and don't enforce.

I dare anyone to find a Spaniard that pays any attention to speed limits now.............

I totally agree with the goal of reducing carbon emissions, but setting the speed limit to achieve it is utter nonsense! Speed limits are set for safety, period. Forcing a driver in a vehicle that gets 100mpg to drive the same speed as one that gets 10mpg creates no incentive to move to more fuel efficient vehicles. The correct way to reduce GHG emissions is through direct taxation of anything that produces them.

The same reasoning applies to the AC limit. It treats every building the same, which is absurd! Again, it creates no incentive to build efficient buildings.

The CFL idea seems good, but I'm getting the feeling this guy is totally misguided.

Let's make sure our government doesn't do anything similarily ineffective.

I was in Spain last December and was wowed by all of the windmills that they had along their southern coast. I really wish we could get things into environmental gear the way they have. I'm really impressed with Spain. No nation is perfect but, when I see countries like Spain making (or trying to make) efforts like this, it's so inspiring.

good luck trying to make spaniards respect such a slow speed limit....

Slowing Down Doesn't Always Save Money - Vehicles are designed to achieve optimal efficiency at certain engine rpms and speeds. Going slower can actually use more fuel over the same distance, especially at much lower speeds. The Nissan Quest minivan does 35 mpg at 75 mph, wherease it only gets 30 mpg at 55 mph. (PESWiki; July 19, 2008)

As the leader of oil consumption in the world, the U.S. definitely needs to take some drastic measures to curb our consumption of fossil fuels! I would love to see our speed limits rolled back to 55 mph and all public buildings to limit the air conditioning use. Some buildings are down-right frigid!

I agree that energy usage needs to be cut drastically for sustainablility. However a top down enforcement is highly unlikely to work over the long haul. Amory Lovins has some very practical solutions for dramtically reducing fossil fuel usage without government rules. I've been purchasing LED downlites to replace incadescent bulbs, but do not care to go with the CFL s because of the disposal problem with mercury.

Oh man the government is going to make a lot of money on speeding tickets.

I don't think this is going to reduce fuel usage much. 20 euros/gallon will though.

Some states still use 55 mph limits, can we check mileage statistics from those before we leap and maybe first leap should be to 65 mph in the faster states.

reducing speed will lower fuel consumption PERIOD! For most cars the optimal speed is 45-55 mph. Basicalli the formula is simple, use the high gear and go as slow as you can (meaning that make sure the engine does not struggle - best way is to keep it somewhere between 1500-2000 rpm) So, it does depent on your car, transmission ratos and engine, but whenever you are at high gear and keep the engine below 2000 rpm, you can be sure that you are using less fuel.
I remember once driving through lithuania with a Civic that was fully loaded with 4 people and gear. They have 70 knh limit on highways instead of the ususal 90 kmh. And I got more than 800 km out of a single tank a opposed to the regular 650 or so. So the savings are not just1-2 MPG, but can be like 10-20%.

"The Nissan Quest minivan does 35 mpg at 75 mph, wherease it only gets 30 mpg at 55 mph"
This seems very unlikely. The physics of air resistance means that the vehicle is using a lot more energy at 75mph.

Wikipedia explains it neatly
"Note that the power needed to push an object through a fluid increases as the cube of the velocity. A car cruising on a highway at 50 mph (80 km/h) may require only 10 horsepower (7.5 kW) to overcome air drag, but that same car at 100 mph (160 km/h) requires 80 hp (60 kW). With a doubling of speed the drag (force) quadruples per the formula. Exerting four times the force over a fixed distance produces four times as much work. At twice the speed the work (resulting in displacement over a fixed distance) is done twice as fast. Since power is the rate of doing work, four times the work done in half the time requires eight times the power.

"It should be emphasized here that the drag equation is an approximation, and does not necessarily give a close approximation in every instance. Thus one should be careful when making assumptions using these equations."

So if your vehicle really is using more fuel at lower speeds it's putting a lot of energy into something other than moving the vehicle- or maybe it's not getting all the energy out of the fuel?

For IEA's view on the potential for energy saving by speed limit reductions, see Saving Oil in a Hurry:
http://www.iea.org/Textbase/publications/free_new_Desc.asp?PUBS_ID=1474

That is great news. I would love to hear that US will reduce the speed limit, and in regard to air conditioning in the public buildings, would be a relief for most of us tired to shop feeling like we just stepped into our freezer.

Please stay educated: NHTSA Hearings 8/4/08

Americans need to know.

I just returned from the NHTSA hearings held today (August 4, 2008) in Washington D.C., regarding the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for NEW Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards (CAFÉ) for years 2011-2015.

IMPORTANT FACTS: You will not believe what you are reading.

1) The 414 pages DEIS analysis was based on an average gasoline price of USD $2.16/gallon for 2011-2020. A calculation approved by the NHTSA administrators/managers. Would you believe it???????????

2) The new CAFÉ rules were also established, negotiated and pre-approved by the NHTSA’s management along with the influence of domestic automotive companies and their lobbyists. We have now established fuel standards for 2011-2020 that presently met in the rest of the Western world (see below)
As one guest speaker said today “are they on another planet?”

NHTSA “NEW Fuel Standards” (2011-2015) decision:

Automobiles are to achieve 31.2 mpg by 2011 and 35.7 mpg by 2015. Light trucks are to achieve 25 mpg by 2011, and 28.6 mpg by 2015.

The NTHSA is also setting a goal of 35 mpg on average for 2020.

America needs to know:

The European Union is currently establishing standards, with a goal of reaching 48.9 miles per gallon for new passenger vehicles as early as 2012. The current EU standard already requires more than 40 miles per gallon about 15% higher than the U.S. goal set for 12 years from now.

Japan currently has a standard of about 40 miles per gallon. Japan aims to further improve fuel efficiency by 17% by 2015, reaching 46.9 miles per gallon.

China has a current average of slightly under 35 miles per gallon. Chinese fuel standards are on target to reach the government’s goal of 35.8 miles per gallon by 2009. China will not only meet, but exceed, the goal just established by the United States for 2020 — more than a full decade earlier.

Australia is targeting 34.4 miles per gallon by 2010.

Canada is targeting 34.1 miles per gallon by 2010.

Under the current administration, purchasing an electric vehicle is becoming more of a necessity rather than an alternative.
BG Automotive Group, Ltd. (www.BGelectricCars.com)