Submitted by Ken Watts
There are many community opinions on setting speed limits on US 20 Ashton to SH 87. The one shared opinion is that speed limits should be reduced and enforced. The community does not support the 85th percentile method of setting the speed limit. In this method, the most reckless drivers/speeders set the speed limit. Nationally this method is falling out of favor. Safety should be the basis for setting speed limits, not mobility. US 20 Ashton to SH 87 is a seasonal recreation highway and traffic volume varies by over 500% from January to July. In addition, conditions vary widely throughout the year. Ice and snow are often present. Wildlife cross the road more often in the spring and fall. This highway passes through multiple business areas and there are higher traffic volume intersections. Truckers are reported to support more consistent speed limits in the area. There is a huge amount of information available regarding setting speed limits. Much of this information is new. There is growing evidence that higher speed causes accidents. Published information follows that inform us on the topic of speed limits and leads to a community solution on this topic. The following information is from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. “More than 11,000 deaths — 29 percent of all crash fatalities — occurred in speed-related crashes in 2020. High speeds make a crash more likely because it takes longer to stop or slow down. They also make collisions more deadly because crash energy increases exponentially as speeds go up. Raising speed limits leads to more deaths. People often drive faster than the speed limit, and if the limit is raised they will go faster still. Research shows that when speed limits are raised, speeds go up, as do fatal crashes. Enforcement of speed limits helps keep speeds down. Traditional enforcement, which relies on police officers to measure speed with radar or other technology, has been joined recently by speed cameras. Speed cameras have been shown to reduce speeds and crashes. Dangers of speed: Speed has a major impact on the number of crashes and injury severity (Elvik, 2005). It influences the risk of crashes and crash injuries in four basic ways:
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May 2023
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