Unique Presentation Identifier:

O2

Program Type

Honors

Faculty Advisor

Jessica Young

Document Type

Presentation

Location

Face-to-face

Start Date

29-4-2025 9:00 AM

Abstract

Speeding is responsible for roughly a third of all crashes, often coming at a deadly cost. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports many negative consequences, such as a greater likelihood of loss of vehicle control, reduced protection equipment effectiveness, increased stopping distance, crash severity, and fuel consumption (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, n.d.). Yet despite these costs, drivers continue to speed. In fact, in our fast paced world, speeding is so normalized that it’s uncommon to encounter a driver following the speed limit. Hawaiian psychology professor Leon James explains it best: people have twisted their definitions of speeding to 20 miles over the original limit, making it more acceptable to go 15 miles more (HiRoad.com 2022). The essence of speeding is a desire to ‘save time,’ but how much time is really saved? According to a study by the US Army—not much. Curiously, they found that the higher the original speed limit, the less time speeding actually saves (Beckman 2022); a fascinating conclusion since it seems to defy the laws of physics. Using the methodology from the Army, this study sought to reproduce their calculations to determine the reason behind their surprising conclusion and whether speeding can save time. The calculations performed resulted in the same time saved the Army concluded, but further analysis revealed a deeper story. Comparing all the possible speeds a car could travel revealed a logarithmic graph trending to a 50% time reduction, no matter the distance. Considering these calculations were also an idealized model—neglecting traffic lights, crashes, or police stops—the irony of how little time is saved is truly impactful. These findings further support the conclusions the Army made in their original study: It’s better to be a minute late than to lose your life in a minute.

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Apr 29th, 9:00 AM

An Analysis on the Time Effectiveness of Speeding while Driving a Vehicle

Face-to-face

Speeding is responsible for roughly a third of all crashes, often coming at a deadly cost. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports many negative consequences, such as a greater likelihood of loss of vehicle control, reduced protection equipment effectiveness, increased stopping distance, crash severity, and fuel consumption (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, n.d.). Yet despite these costs, drivers continue to speed. In fact, in our fast paced world, speeding is so normalized that it’s uncommon to encounter a driver following the speed limit. Hawaiian psychology professor Leon James explains it best: people have twisted their definitions of speeding to 20 miles over the original limit, making it more acceptable to go 15 miles more (HiRoad.com 2022). The essence of speeding is a desire to ‘save time,’ but how much time is really saved? According to a study by the US Army—not much. Curiously, they found that the higher the original speed limit, the less time speeding actually saves (Beckman 2022); a fascinating conclusion since it seems to defy the laws of physics. Using the methodology from the Army, this study sought to reproduce their calculations to determine the reason behind their surprising conclusion and whether speeding can save time. The calculations performed resulted in the same time saved the Army concluded, but further analysis revealed a deeper story. Comparing all the possible speeds a car could travel revealed a logarithmic graph trending to a 50% time reduction, no matter the distance. Considering these calculations were also an idealized model—neglecting traffic lights, crashes, or police stops—the irony of how little time is saved is truly impactful. These findings further support the conclusions the Army made in their original study: It’s better to be a minute late than to lose your life in a minute.