Bills in three states call for speed limit changes

January 19, 2023

Keith Goble

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Multiple measures introduced at statehouses around the country would revise speed limit rules.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association says roadways are safest when all vehicles are allowed to travel at the same rate of speed. The Association does not advocate for a specific speed limit.

Indiana

Pursuit underway in Indiana calls for doing away with a speed limit differential on the state’s fastest roadways.

Indiana law now allows cars to drive 70 mph while vehicles in excess of 26,000 pounds are limited to 65 mph.

Identical House and Senate bills would eliminate the speed gap on rural stretches of interstate and on the Indiana Toll Road.

Sen. Jim Tomes, R-Wadesville, and Rep. Mike Aylesworth, R-Hebron, are behind bills that would affect an estimated 124,000 vehicles registered in the state and thousands more that access Indiana interstates on a daily basis.

SB13 and HB1165 are in committee.

OOIDA support

Doug Morris, OOIDA director of safety and security operations, said that speed differentials are based on a flawed belief that slower trucks equal safer trucks. He adds that is simply not the case.

“It’s encouraging to see the legislative pursuit in Indiana to correct a law that was flawed in nature and did nothing to improve highway safety,” Morris said.

Related bill

A separate speed limit bill in the House would increase the speed limit on certain U.S. highways in the state.

Sponsored by Rep. Dave Heine, R-Fort Wayne, the bill would increase the speed limit on stretches of U.S. 24, 25, and 30 from 55 mph to 70 mph. As written, the change would apply to cars and large trucks.

Affected stretches of highway:

  • U.S. 24 between Huntington and Logansport.
  • U.S. 25 between Lafayette and Logansport.
  • U.S. 24 from the Ohio border to the Interstate 469 interchange.
  • U.S. 30 from the Ohio border to the Interstate 469 interchange.

HB1077 is in the House Roads and Transportation Committee.

South Carolina

A South Carolina bill addresses concern about slow-moving traffic on the state’s fastest highways.

State law prohibits slow-moving vehicles from impeding “the normal and reasonable movement” of traffic. Exceptions are made for when reduced speed is necessary for safe operation or in compliance with law.

The South Carolina Department of Transportation and local authorities are also authorized to establish minimum speed zones. Affected areas can be set when an engineering and traffic investigation shows that slow speeds on a portion of highway consistently impede the normal and reasonable movement of traffic.

Sponsored by Rep. J. Todd Rutherford, D-Richland, H3364 would raise the minimum speed limit along the state’s interstates. Specifically, the bill reads that along highways with a maximum posted speed of 70 mph the minimum speed would be 50 mph – up from 45 mph.

The state DOT previously estimated that about 230 signs would be needed to post a new minimum speed limit. The cost was estimated at $200,000.

The bill has been sent to the House Education and Public Works Committee.

West Virginia

If one West Virginia state lawmaker gets his way, the maximum speed limit on rural portions of interstate would get a bump.

State law permits 70 mph travel on rural interstates. In 2019, a House resolution approved by the legislature gave the West Virginia Department of Transportation authority to increase the speed limit on interstate highways from 70 mph to 75 mph.

Sen. Robert Karnes, R-Randolph, has introduced a bill to authorize 80 mph speeds on interstate highways and four-lane, limited-access highways. The bill provides an exception for portions of those roadways passing through the city limits of municipalities.

Currently, Maine and Michigan are the only states east of the Mississippi River with speeds posted above 70 mph. Maine has rural interstates posted at 75 mph. Michigan began increasing interstate highway speed limits in 2017.

The bill, SB34, is in the Senate Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. LL

More Land Line coverage of state news is available.