Wyoming and Idaho have respectively announced plans to raise the speed limit on certain stretches of freeway from 75 to 80 mph starting on July 1st.
Both states will conduct a separate study this spring to determine where the speed limit should be raised and what effect the measure will have on traffic. The studies haven’t started yet, but both states admit the speed limit will primarily be raised on rural stretches of multi-lane highways.
“In the Boise [Idaho] area 80 mph isn’t appropriate, and possibly in other congested areas in urban spots,” affirmed Senator Jim Patrick in an interview with television station KMTV.
Although Wyoming has made it clear that two-lane highways will not get a speed increase, some lawmakers are nevertheless worried that raising the speed limit will increase the number of accidents because the de facto speed that most cars travel at will become 85 mph.
Last September, the Utah Department of Transportation raised the speed limit from 75 to 80 mph on 289 miles of interstates 15, 80 and 84. The state has not reported an increase in accidents since the new limit came into effect, and state officials admit many Utahns have barely noticed the new limit because they were already driving 80 in 75 mph zones.
“People are driving the speed they are comfortable driving and it brings them into compliance with the law” explained John Gleason, a spokesman for the Utah Department of Transportation.
America’s Autobahn
Texas made national headlines about a year and half ago when it opened State Highway 130 with a posted speed limit of 85 mph, the highest in the United States. Designed to bypass I-35, SH 130 is a limited-access toll road that costs over $8 without a toll transponder.
Photo by Ronan Glon.
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