[GoNative]

Whilst we're on the subject of roads and driving how about the ridiculously low speed limits in this country?! The highest allowable speed limit anywhere in Hokkaido is 80 km/h. This is on 2 lane expressways. In Aus roads like this would have speed limits of 110 km/h.

I can understand lower limits in built up areas although some streets in the town I live have speed limits of only 30 km/h and this for streets a couple of km's long with no schools!

The default max limit on country roads around here is 60 km/h although most have signs of 50 km/h. In Aus all country roads have default max limits of 100 km/h.

Now why are they so low? Have the bureaucrats not realised that cars can actually travel considerably faster and safer these days than say 60 years ago? Also considering that probably less than 10% of drivers actually observe the speed limits what's the point of having them so low? Also up this way it's known that the police will rarely pull you over unless you are doing more than 20 km over the limit. So if few people actually observe the limits and the police don't even really police them why do they remain so damned low? It's not that small a country!