TWC bandwidth twice as fast through VPN versus direct? WTH?

[Shinta]

So, TWC apparently upgraded my internet here in L.A., and for free no less. To compare speeds before I upgraded modems, I did a couple of speed tests, and I don't know what to make of the results.

PIA = Private Internet Access' VPN

Speedtest.net
Through PIA
53.63 mbps down
2.02 mbps up

Direct connection (no VPN)
21.65 mbps down
2.19 mbps up


https://www.speakeasy.net/speedtest/
Through PIA
39.6 mbps down
2.08 mbps up

Direct connection (no VPN)
20.14 mbps down
2.14 mbps up

As you can see, using the VPN roughly doubles the speed of the connection, which makes zero sense to me. I was expecting to see a speed drop of, say, 5-10% instead.

So, what gives?

 

[bunnyfubbles]

could be that they're throttling the speed test sites, putting them in the "slow lane" (which usually isn't the case IME, as it would make more sense to give these sites bandwidth and limit all the other ones, that way they can walk the average ignorant consumer through tech support and "prove" that they are getting proper speeds), but the VPN isn't being throttled because its just a middleman

 

[RadiclDreamer]

The vpn could be taking you through a better routing path than the default TWC, it may be out of their control.