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One problem, Mr. Brandes.

This would RUIN the economy. America counts on consumption to lubricate the wheels of capitalism.

Repeat after me:

I will consume .. I will consume .. I will consume ..
I will consume .. I will consume .. I will consume ..

So that was you, Raymond...

It must be a miserable existence to have to live in a capitalist based society when you're a socialist at heart. I mean everywhere you look, there is something going on to piss you off and ruin your day...people driving their private autos (SOME with the air conditioning running and not going ten miles out of their way in order to car-pool), filling stations selling gas for the sole purpose of making money, restaurants selling animal products in order to turn a *gasp* profit, etc, etc, etc...
Yes, there is plenty of misery to wallow in for the true socialist stuck here in the good ol' US of A.

Mr. Brandes:

You're heart is in the right place, but you should consider driving at the speed limit, if conditions permit. Many accidents are caused by speeding, but others are caused by differences in speed.

Also, on single travel lane roads, you are effectively imposing your travel preferences on others.

If everyone drove at the posted speeds instead of 10 to 20 miles above, we would cut our nation's gasoline consumption by 7-23 percent (see http://fueleconomy.gov/feg/driveHabits.shtml). No one who is REALLY concerned about the environment should be regularly driving above the speed limit.

i drive for a living and i can attest first hand to unreasonable/irrationale drivers. mr. ribar there is not a law which require someone to drive the posted speed limit (except on freeway, to the best of my knowledge). some ( such as myself on occassion ) deem it unsafe to drive the posted speed limit, such as when it rains, or snows or sleets or even (heaven forbid) when it turns night time. my greatest fear is dodging deer and then being rear ended by the moron who has been tailgating me. but i've been recently told on these forums that it is transplants (i.e. non native n.c. residents) who are responsible for tailgating, speeding, passing school buses, etc. two things i've learned since living in n.c. - one is that tailgating is expected and that throwing thrash from you vehicle is a God given n.c. right. mr. brandes i commend you on your right and willingness to help reduce oil dependency.
remember i drive for a living (with a clearly marked delivery vehicle) and imo 7 out of 10 people tailgate and speed here in n.c. - if you want to place your own life in danger i'm all for that - but stay off my rear bumper and placing me in YOUR danger zone...please !!

I'd rather traffic continually flow, but left lane laws are even less-enforced than tailgating, unfortunately.
It's still the law. GS § 20‑146, to be exact.
"Upon all highways any vehicle proceeding at less than the legal maximum speed limit shall be driven in the right‑hand lane then available for thru traffic"
http://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_20/GS_20-146.html

Speed fluctuations are the gas wasters. Witness your 38.7 mpg claim, which I challenge. That is gently-driven Corolla territory, and your heavier Stratus, even with the Neon engine, was likely closer to 32-33. Heck, even the Neon can't get into the high 30s. I'd bet either your dashboard mpg indicator is a bit optimistic or your calculations were off. Still, you couldn't make the claim if you weren't at a nearly constant speed.

I would love to see a study on how much _more_ gas is wasted/emissions are produced simply by people having to floor it to pass the folks driving 5 under.

Unintended consequences strikes again, I'd bet.

Roger

Reminds me of Jimmy Carter telling everyone to turn the thermostat to 65 degrees and 55 degrees at night and wear a sweater.

Personally, I do get better gas mileage when I don't race to red lights. It might help if I lost a few pounds as well.

But I have to agree with Roger. There is no way on earth that a Dodge Stratus got 38 mph on that trip. Just isn't possible unless the last half of the trip was downhill with the car turned off.

I'm a little surprised a 2001 Dodge could make it to New Jersey and back. What a bunch of junk.

Definition of Dodge: To avoid

"Many accidents are caused by speeding, but others are caused by differences in speed."

So true. Witness Richard Petty, who gently bumped a benighted sole driving the speed limit in the fast lane.

I drive with the traffic flow, which is usually 5-10 above the speed limit. I guess this gives me another thing I'm supposed to feel guilty about, but don't.

Mr. raymond is also know to his grandkids as pop-pop. He is a very dedicated man who everyone should take somekind of lesson from. He is a very dedicated person when it comes to anything he does. And yes he does have a 2001 dodge stratus that ,like our enviroment, will last if you take proper care of it..... My suggestion to all is when in doubt try it yourself before bad mouthing others........
Pop-pop keep saving my earth your great grankids will need it.