Posted 2:30 am Friday, January 27, 2012
New Law Hikes Speed Limit Along 120 Miles In East Texas
By TIM MONZINGO and DAYNA WORCHEL
Staff Writers
Staff Writers
Drivers with a heavier foot are getting a literal boost from the state soon as the speed limit on Interstate 20 rises.
By spring, the Texas Department of Transportation plans to have 75 mph signs posted from the Van Zandt County line to the Louisiana border, a more than 120-mile stretch of interstate spanning Van Zandt, Smith, Gregg and Harrison counties.
"The speed on this part of Interstate 20 was raised because it met the 85th percentile guidelines in a TxDOT engineering study," TxDOT spokesman Larry Krantz said Monday. "The results of the study were that 85 percent of the drivers drove at 75 mph on the 120 miles of Interstate 20."
That study was the effect of House Bill 1352, signed into law in September. It is the same legislation which called for the 65-mile-an-hour nighttime speed limits to be eliminated.
The change will not become effective until all current limit signs along the ribbon of interstate are replaced, which Krantz predicted will be accomplished by May 1.
The change is meeting with mixed emotions from truckers and travelers.
"It will probably be nice," said Dallas-native Donny Sumner, who travels the interstate to East Texas for business once or twice a year.
Sumner said his main concern is whether the road can handle high-speed traffic from both passenger cars and commercial vehicles, although he expressed confidence in the soundness of the interstate.
"It appears to me that it's pretty smooth, not a lot of problems," he said.
South Lake resident Grant Hill said he supported the change, which will allow him to get to and from appointments in East Texas more quickly.
Hill said he typically drives over the speed limit while traveling the interstate and with the limit raised from 70 to 75, he would drive 80.
"I think cars are safer and they can handle it," he said, adding the road's condition played a role in how fast he drives. "It's a good road."
Hill said last year, he racked up 31,000 miles on the odometer and traffic on the interstate was not a serious concern for him because he lived in an area where it was worse.
"Go to the metroplex if you want to see some people drive crazy," he said.
The thought that people would drive even faster than 75 along the road was a cause of uncertainty for Big Sandy resident Tammy Blackstone. Mrs. Blackstone works in Tyler and her daughter lives in Shreveport, so the interstate is a major part of her traveling, she said.
She said she feels like people already abuse the speed limits, pushing it 5 or 10 mph faster than what is posted.
"Everybody thinks you can go 10 (mph) over without getting a ticket," she said.
With higher speeds, she said she feels like more wrecks will be "a given" along the road.
Although Department of Public Safety officials would not speculate on the effect the change would have on the number of accidents along the road, Trooper Jean Dark said higher speeds mean the potential for more serious injuries in accidents.
"The faster someone goes, the more force that is transferred to the body," she said. "Lower speeds mean fewer traumas to the body. The faster that anyone goes, the greater the likelihood of a more serious bodily injury occurring"
Tennessee-based truck driver Brandon Johnson said with higher speed limits, he'd like to see more law enforcement out to make sure drivers' top speeds end where the signs say. Passenger cars at high speeds whipping around his truck are a source of concern, he said.
Still, he said he felt the change would have little effect on people's driving habits.
Like Mrs. Blackstone, he said people just drive fast, regardless of speed limits or his and other tractor-trailers around them.
"They do it anyways," he said. "It doesn't matter if they raise it or not."
