Reader comments
UDOT says drivers going slower in 80 mph zones

Huh?? | 9:45 p.m. Oct. 21, 2009

Maybe my math skills aren't as good as the reporters, but how is 83-85 mph "actually slower" than 81-85 mph? Sounds about the same, if not a little more. Certainly doesn't support the assertion in the lead paragraph ...

Re: Huh | 10:34 p.m. Oct. 21, 2009

It's the differential between the posted limit and the 85 percentile. It's confusing as written, but they're saying that before (posted = 75) the 85 percentile speed was 6-10 mph over. Now it's only 3-5 mph over, which is slower.

yeah, | 10:37 p.m. Oct. 21, 2009

drivers didn't really slow down; they're just not going so far over the posted limit.

Comments continue below

so... | 7:38 a.m. Oct. 22, 2009

So if we make the speed limit 200 mph on every street, highway and freeway, then we will "slow down" everyone.
great logic ...

400fun | 10:49 a.m. Oct. 22, 2009

I have noted patrol cars at each end of the 80 mile speed zones - Speed Trap? Anyway I feel less guilty for speeding. I think their great.

Shane | 9:28 a.m. Oct. 24, 2009

I love how the lady says "Speed Kills" ... I'm pretty sure that if you're in an accident at 75-80 or 80-85 the result is going to be pretty much the same. I'd rather go out in a flash than bleed out for an hour.

I drive 85 on I-70 and I-25 in the rural stretches of CO all the time. So does just about everyone else. On I-70 from UT to CO I was doing 100 with four other vehicles and felt safe doing so.

ohyeah? | 9:28 a.m. Oct. 24, 2009

You can bet that this isn't going to last long. The screams from the local gov'ts about loss of ticket revenue and the nattering from the insurance companies will see to that.
What's terrifying to elected officials everywhere is if the early results (no increase in accidents) holds up, the pressures to bring posted limits into line with real world traffic speeds will be immense.
We wouldn't want our laws to have some measure of common sense, now would we?

Greg | 9:37 a.m. Oct. 24, 2009

A four-word reminder to anyone who thinks the speed limits are too high:

"Slower traffic keep right"

There are signs which state that right there on the highways, which you're too busy cruising in the left lane to notice.

Benji | 1:33 p.m. Oct. 24, 2009

the SAFEST highways in the world have no speed limits. Speed limits are there to save gas and to make money from fines.

Wise | 2:34 p.m. Oct. 24, 2009

The slower you go, the more other people have to adjust their driving habits, causing a dangrous situation. There should be minimum speed limites. 50 MPH MINIMUM on an interstate and have it enforced with higher traffic fines for going slower than that.

ilovegreg | 2:50 p.m. Oct. 24, 2009

greg.. you are so right. basic traffic laws being broken cause more accidents than anything else. failing to keep right except to pass, failing to signal, cell phone use, distracted driving. these all cause road rage and fines should be quadrupled for them. if you create the risk of an accident, you should be stripped of your license on the spot and have your car towed.

Sanpeter | 9:44 p.m. Oct. 24, 2009

My friend and I sometimes hit 110 on the straightaway between Ephraim and Chester. It's lonely there too.

Re: Greg | 9:48 p.m. Oct. 24, 2009

Brian Regan refers to those who drive slow in the left lane as "enforcers". Utah has more than its share. I hate how they try to force us to obey the law, interfering with our free agency.

Slowpoke? | 10:17 p.m. Oct. 25, 2009

Whatever the speed limit is set at, it would sure be a help for some of us who believe in obeying the law if they would enforce it.

dj | 2:37 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

wow, what horrible statistical interpretation. And for such a hot-button issue too.

jimp | 4:20 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Speed limits in Yewtah, appear to be only a "suggestion"

LOL | 5:04 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Really? So theoretically, just raise the speed limit and speeding no longer becomes a problem. However the death rates climb dramatically because of out of control and unsafe vehicles driving the faster speed limit. More roll overs, more blown tires, more vehicles flying off the roads as they search for their cell phones, and more deaths per road mile. But that's okay, at least they weren't speeding. This "white knuckle" driving that forces many drivers to drive faster than safety warrants must be a thrilling sport in Utah.

There is no freeway or road in Utah ever designed or built for speeds beyond the 55-70mph speeds. Not to mention that most vehicles are not designed for handling at high speed or fuel economy.

Is the state and taxpayers actually paying these departments for this kind of twisted logic? Only a political mind can twist the facts to make themselves look good, which I think UDOT is trying to do.

yup | 5:59 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

could have told you this. i've observed this countless places. seems counter-intuitive but its true.

RE: Sanpeter | 7:02 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Ephraim to Chester is not a lonley section of road. Your crazy for doing that there.

(you need to do it on the newly paved pigeon hollow road)

Evets | 7:17 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Re: the first comments referring to the speed differentials. You read it wrong.
With the limit at 75 mph they were actually driving at 83 to 85. Now with the limits at 80 mph the are driving between 81 and 85. SO...there was an actual slow down (but I am not sure it is statistically significant.

Kids | 8:14 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

I passed a 35 mph sign the other day and discussed speed limit with my 11 year old son. He said that the actual speed limit was 5-10 mph over that.

I don't consider myself to be a "speeder" and try to stay within the limits, but I guess this is my wake up call.

Look for my new book - the psychology of a speeder - analyzing why raising the speed limit decreased average speed.

Hmph | 9:11 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Perhaps we should calculate statistics for all to see. How do they get that 83-85 mph? They take thousands of vehicles speeds and average them. How do they get 81-85? They calculate THOUSANDS of cars and average them.
Thye raised the speed limit, and guess what? NO ONE WENT FASTER! My goodness people! You start complaining about raising the speed limit, and investigations have shown that THEY WENT SLOWER!

But yes, because now there is a bih 80 instead of a 75, it is more dangerous, it doesn't matter what speed the cars are going, just the sign.

Bill Smith | 9:22 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Speed should be determined by road conditions, not by sign put up to collect more revenue.

What a shame | 9:33 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

It's a shame that we change speed limits since people refuse to obey the law. Our moral decline continues.

If people want to speed then that's their right, but they should expect the possibility of getting caught. The govt achieves nothing by legalizing bad behavior.

Thank you | 10:09 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

I take that road a lot, and for some reason going in between 80-85 just feels natural on the road. This speed change had made my life so much easier. Maybe now we could focus on changing it around Beaver...

Shecky | 10:15 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Judging from the speed of traffic when I drive to SLC, which is quite often, I thought the speed limit between Tremonton and Bountiful WAS 85 mph. And I'm just keeping up with everybody else.

Big Green Tractor | 10:41 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

I guess I'm just lucky. I haven't been pulled over for speeding since I was 16, and I make it from Ogden down to Fillmore in usually around 2 hrs and 10 minutes. Love that stretch from Springville to Fillmore. Nothing out there!

Cowboy Joe | 10:50 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

I like to drive 83 around the Fillmore Beaver area. That is a good stretch of I15 to speed.

Stupid is as Stupid does | 10:56 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Driving at 80 mph any time any where is Stupid, Dangers and idiotic. It's hard to believe intelligent people would risk their lives and the lives of their passengers to save time. Government officials that authorized this need to be fired. Get smart people . . . use your head . . . speed kills . . . and it's not good on your car, either.

Thinkin' Man | 11:36 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Ever driven on I-84 east of Portland? The state speed limit is 65, even on straight, flat, rural interstates, and it's a frustrating waste of time that accomplishes almost nothing. We need to see accident rates on that highway versus I-15 in central Utah.

All cars are not created equal. A Suzuki Samurai at 80 mph is very unsafe, while a BMW 3-series is much safer. Who should be ticketed are the ones speeding in unsafe cars.

ENFORCERS ? | 11:45 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

I don't know if some people delibertly drive in the left lane, are just not paying attention or what but it appears dangeous to pass on the right though it is frequently done. Is that legal or not, I don't know.

Once I saw a big 18 wheeler get right up behind a car in the left lane & even honked his big horn, but that didn't seem to get him to move over out of the left lane.

@Stupid is as Stupid does | 11:52 a.m. Oct. 26, 2009

After driving on I-15 a lot, there must be a lot of stupid people as it seems most of the cars are going that fast. Sometimes you get really stupid people that pass the 80mph stupid people "like they are standing still."

Honestly, I can't see much difference in the traffic on the 80mph sectins and the nearby 75 mph sections. It seems to me a lot drive about the same on both streches

Speed Kills | 12:13 p.m. Oct. 26, 2009

Janice Fisher, D-West Valley City, was more somber, saying speed kills.

"Is it true that we're more likely to get killed in a crash the faster we're going?" she asked Braceras.

Isn't this a good thing for society? after all it's cheaper to bury someone than it is to keep them alive and with all the pending goverment cost cutting in health care i would think that raising the speed limit to 100 could save billions

Fillmore Beaver area | 12:17 p.m. Oct. 26, 2009

is a great place to go faster. Good job pointing that out Cowboy Joe

Lefty | 12:45 p.m. Oct. 26, 2009

With a 75 mile an hour limit, most people drive the rule-of-thumb 5-10 miles over the limit. With an 80 mph limit, rational drivers know that UHP will probably not give them the same latitude, to they keep it in the 80-85 range. That's why there is less 'speeding.'

And just in case the point hasn't sunk in, if you're driving in the left lane and not passing anyone, MOVE OVER! (It's the law.)

illogic | 1:06 p.m. Oct. 26, 2009

WHAAAAAATTTTT? Did the writer know what she was saying in that claim? Ok, it looks like the speed at which most people drive is 81-85 -it’s a constant! The only number that’s changing is the speed limit. In other words, why don’t we raise the speed limit to 300, in that way, 81-85 will be VEEEEEEERYYYYY SLOW! ...great LOGIC Desnews reporters!

Kumar | 3:23 p.m. Oct. 27, 2009

UDOT numbers crunchers must not get out much. While gas prices were high in 2008, people speed less and drove less, skewing these stats. Add the numbers for 2009 and you'll see an uptick.

If people drove less in 2008 and there were the same number of crashes as the previous year, it's an increase.

As for limits, either enforce them effectively, or take the signs down except when road conditions (curves/hills) warrant them.

Grayfox | 4:02 p.m. Oct. 27, 2009

LOL,

I take it you didn't read the article, at all? No increase in accidents, even fender benders, occurred from the increased speed limit.

Unfortunately raising speed limits in this country is probably a bad idea because driver education is a joke along with people eating, talking on cellphones, applying make up, yelling at their kids, while driving. Not to mention those who are unable to follow even the most basic of driving tenets such as signaling, keeping right, etc.

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