If you love taking a drive on a beautiful mountain pass then at least once you must have thought about what it would be like to drive through the Swiss Alps – one of the most amazingly beautiful mountain ranges in the world. You wouldn’t want to go much faster than warned around the twisting and turning curves, especially in the snowy peaks, but you may be a little anxious to get there on your way. You may want to think twice before you go zipping through Switzerland on the way to your mountain adventure. As of January 1, 2013, anyone caught speeding in Switzerland serves jail time. So far, police officials are even more strict than they already were when they catch someone breaking the speed limit. According to autoevolution.com, speedy motorists could serve anywhere from one to four years if they are caught. The new law outlines the range of offenses as follows:
30 km/h posted limit – 70+ km/h
50 km/h posted limit – 100+ km/h (city)
80 km/h posted limit – 140+ km/h (main roads)
120 km/h posted limit – 200+ km/h (highways)
If only all countries could be so forceful. In South Africa, four people from the same general area died in one week from car-related accidents. In the United States, over 30,0000 people died from auto accidents in 2012 alone. In 2010, 1.2 million people died of auto-related accidents. That may not seem like many considering that the population was 6.9 billion, but for many, that is the population of an ENTIRE COUNTRY. Cars are being transformed in ways that help the environment and make the machines themselves safer for their passengers. But this is not enough. We need a total makeover of the laws that govern speeding. In some areas, there are no penalty, or just a small amount of a fine plus the annoyance of attending court. The saddest part is that the majority of all of these people are under the age of 21. Maybe what we all need to do, as members of humanity, is follow the example set by the Swiss government. Your child could be next.
