decars1-1, Exercise 2: A plan to test a myth

Model answer (myth: "The Autobahn has no speed limit"; check the details):

Question: what are the speed rules on the German motorway network, and how much of it has no limit?

Evidence to look for:
1. The law: the German road traffic regulations, which set a recommended speed of 130 km/h (the Richtgeschwindigkeit) on motorways without a general limit, and the rules about where limits apply.
2. Statistics: the share of motorway length with a posted limit, from the federal road authority or the motoring club, and the date of each figure (check, since the share changes).
3. Rules in practice: liability in an accident at high speed, so "no limit" does not mean "no rules".
4. Comparison with other countries.

Where: federal transport ministry and road authority publications, ADAC, and independent road-safety studies.

Likely result: there is no general limit on the motorway as a whole, but a large part of the network has limits for traffic, safety or noise reasons, and claims that the whole network is unlimited are overstated, although a majority of its length is reported to have no posted limit (check the current figure).