Illinois study: U.S. speed limits directly impact deaths

William Atkins
Monday, 20 July 2009 18:32

Science - Health

Then, in 1995, the 1974 law was repealed and all fifty U.S. states were allowed to set their own speed limits on interstate highways that exist within their state boundaries. Consequently, the speed limits were raised to speeds much higher than 55 miles per hour.

For instance, in 2009, many interstate highways in Illinois is 65 miles per hour, and on Michigan interstates the maximum interstate speed is 70 miles per hour.

Dr. Friedman and his team concluded in their study that: "The primary finding of our study was that over the 10-year period following the repeal of National Maximum Speed Law, there were approximately 12,500 deaths due to the increased speed limits across the U.S.” [UIC press release]

Within the UIC press release, it notes: “The researchers suggest that policy makers reevaluate national policy on speed and road safety and consider reduced speed limits and improved enforcement with speed camera networks to save lives.”

And, the article adds, “Speed camera programs have been implemented in England, France and Australia and have shown immediate reductions in motor vehicle crash fatalities, said Friedman.”

Dr. Friedman states, "This is a failed policy because it was, in essence, an experiment over 10 years. People assumed that increasing the speed limit would not have an impact. We've shown that something has happened and it's quite dramatic."

The UIC article concludes with a comparison of these 12,500 deaths and the people that died on September 11th. He states, "That tragic event has led to a whole foreign policy. We estimate that approximately 12,500 people died as a result of a policy to deregulate speed enforcement -- four times what happened on September 11th -- and yet changing the policy to reduce speed limits may be very difficult."