Since the federal government gave individual states the power to set their
own speed limits through legislation effective in December, 1995, 44 states
have passed measures to increase speed limits, some of which are on small
portions of roads. Currently 29 states have speed limits posted at 70
mph or higher on some of their highway systems. The
chart below provides rural and urban interstate speed limits by state.
Speed and impact on crash fatalities
Although there is no arguing the fact that the average speed of drivers in the US is on the increase, the debate regarding whether or not higher speeds are life-threatening continues. According to Federal Highway Administration data, between 1980–92, the percentage of interstate drivers exceeding 65 mph more than quadrupled to nearly 23% from 4.9%.
A study released by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in January, 1999 found that higher travel speeds translate into more fatalities. IIHS reports that in 24 states that passed higher speed limits during late 1995 and 1996, motor vehicle deaths increased during 1996–97. Comparisons were made in these states from the time speed limits were raised through 1997 with corresponding fatality counts for the same months in the six-year period prior to when their speed limits were changed. A control group of seven states where speed limits had not changed during the study period was used for comparison. Ohio was not included in this study.
IIHS estimates a 15% increase in fatalities on interstates and freeways, based on its findings. The 24 states included in this study were Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
Others are quick to note that while Americans are driving more miles than ever, the fatality rate per highway mile has declined 11% since 1995, the year federal government abandoned the 55 mph national speed limit.
Safer cars and highways may serve to encourage higher speeds, but no study to date has determined that driving faster than posted speed limits or prevailing road conditions is safer than driving at moderate speeds.
Speed limits and crash fatalities in Ohio
In 1996, the Ohio General Assembly approved legislation allowing the Ohio Department of Transportation to raise speed limits to 65 mph on designated urban interstates and rural highways for passenger vehicles and commercial buses. Previous state law set the speed limits at 55 mph on urban interstates and rural highways, and 65 on rural interstates.
In Ohio, fatalities declined following the passage of the 55 mph speed limit law in 1974, the oil crisis era. Fatalities in the Buckeye state have been under the 2,000 mark since then with the exception of three years, 1978–1980. Worth noting is the fact that there was a 6% increase in Ohio fatalities in 1987, the year after Congress raised speed limits to 65 mph on rural interstates.
Crash fatalities, according to the Ohio Department of Public Safety (ODPS), have declined in recent years. There were 1,284 reported traffic fatalities in 1999 (provisional figure), compared to 1,423 traffic fatalities in 1998, 1,439 in 1997 and 1,395 in 1996. Crash-related injuries have steadily decreased during the same four-year period. ODPS figures show 121,078 injuries in 1999 (provisional figure), down from the 123,785 injuries in 1998. There were 128,296 injuries reported in 1997 and 130,793 in 1996.
Provisional numbers for 2000 show that the number of crash-related fatalities continues to decline with 1,237 reported. Based on previous years, the final death toll may rise to about 1,300.
The other chart below provides a summary of Ohio’s speed limit laws since the first one was established in 1908.
(Response Insurance, Car & Driving History Quiz)
History of Ohio’s Speed Limit Laws
| 1908 |
The first speed limit was 20 mph outside municipalities, 8 mph inside municipalities |
| 1926 |
35 mph |
| 1940 |
45 mph |
| 1941 |
50 mph |
| 12/1/42 |
Gas rationing and a 35 mph speed limit on all roads that had been in effect along the East Coast for 7 months was extended nationally to conserve gasoline and rubber during World War II |
| 8/15/45 |
50 mph speed limit reinstated |
| 1958 |
60 mph daytime, 50 mph speed limit at night |
| 1963 |
70 mph for cars and 55 mph for trucks and commercial tractors on interstates; 60 mph daytime and 50 nighttime on noninterstates |
| 1974 |
55 mph for all vehicles on interstates and most other highways |
| 1987 |
65 mph for cars on 900 miles of rural interstates, 55 mph for commercial vehicles weighing more than 8,000 lbs. |
| 1991 |
65 mph for cars on another 246 miles of interstates |
| 1992 |
65 mph on 209 miles of rural noninterstates |
| 1996 |
Speed limits raised to 65 mph on designated urban interstates and rural highways for passenger vehicles and commercial buses |
Source: Ohio Historical Society