Technofreak:

 

Without being present it's very hard to make a judgment call.

 

In my experience you can easily add 10 and in some cases up to 20 kph to those recommended figures without too much effort and still manage a comfortable ride. Based on this I would consider a driver that was sticking to those speeds religiously is probably holding the traffic up. I use the signs as a heads up but drive to what I see.

 

Remember they are advisory speeds.

 

True...and drivers out there can be 16 to 105. The road has to be designed for and safe for all of them. 

I do get a wee bit tired of young guys failing utterly to appreciate that less experienced or older drivers operate within a different set of parameters for safeconduct on the roads.....that are still well within the limits defined by the law. 

I also very much enjoy sitting at the lights behind the hoon who passed me 20kms ago because I was going too slow. How can I be? We both just fetched up at the same point on the road within seconds of each other. As often as not, on NZ roads, having to pass everything is a futile and immature thing to do. You get there first, but you don't get there much sooner....for all the effort. 

I pulled over to let them pass, but the stock truck laden with cattle 2km in front me wasn't as accommodating. I can cover 2km in less than the 2 minutes it takes the lights to change phase. .....and off we go.