Higher Speed Limits Increase Road Fatalities

July 29, 2009

More than 12,500 deaths and 36,600 injuries could have been prevented between 1995 and 2005 if only the US followed lower speed limits. This is a conclusion made by the American Journal of Public Health after comparing statistics from past decades.

Lee Friedman, one of the experts who authored the study, said they had compared the traffic fatalities across the US (except Hawaii and Massachusetts) for the past years and the road statistics before 1974. During this period, speed limit on all interstate highways was 55 mph, lower than the current federal speed limit of 65 mph.

According to the group’s analysis, the higher speed limits resulted to a 3.2 percent increase of road fatalities; 9.1 percent on interstate highways; and 4 percent on urban interstates.

However, all the states that maintained the same speed limits showed a notable decline of fatal crashes.

This finding opposes several studies which suggested that changes in traffic laws are usually temporary.

In 1987, Congress passed the Surface Transportation and Uniform Relocation Assistance Act law that increased the speed limit to 65 mph which was adopted by 41 states.

Eight years later, lawmakers passed the National Highway Designation Act that lifted all the federal speed limits.