Utah raises speed limit to 80 MPH

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RedRooster

RedRooster

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Sep 14, 2000
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Holy hell, that's almost 130kph. Man could I get places at that speed, it'd be awesome on twinned highways!
 
EagleKeeper

EagleKeeper

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phucheneh

phucheneh

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EagleKeeper said:
Most of the nation do not have interstates of such quality and congestion.

Need newer roads and low traffic counts. As one gets into the SLC and St George areas, the limit drips due to increased congestion. The speed is not safe with the amount of vehicles
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I don't follow your reasoning.

The interstates that pass through the middle of my city drop to 55mph limits. In rush hour, you're booking if you manage 5.5mph.

Doesn't mean that should be the limit. During lighter hours, 70 is still the norm. 'Reckless.'

...reckless is being in the 70mph sections and cruising at 45mph after a 15mph merge.
 
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SyndromeOCZ

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Aug 8, 2010
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In St George it only drops down to 65 in the city. and its 75 from St george up to Leeds, where it now is 80mph.

Nearly every time I go up to SLC then if I'm not going 80 then I get ran over. I generally try and avoid the rush hour traffic though.

When they were doing the 'test zones' north of Cedar City then I got clocked going 85 in the 80 mph zone, Got written up for 5 over as well.
 
RockinZ28

RockinZ28

Platinum Member
Mar 5, 2008
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Jumpem said:
Way too high. I would prefer going back to the national 55mph limit.
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God no. Was in the Indianapolis and Louisville area last week. Had a lot of 55mph freeways around the cities. Feels like you're crawling. Lot of people still do 75+, I was really having a hard time staying under 65. Lots of undercover cops pulling over "speeders." Just bs limits to create ticket revenue when the vast majority of drivers are going faster.

Doing 80 without the fear of getting a ticket would be awesome.

punjabiplaya said:
Texas reporting in at 80 and some parts at 85. It's great.
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Wish some of those were in the areas of Houston I go to. 60-65mph on the freeways I travel. Los Angeles is the same way. I flow with traffic at 75-85 daily on the 710 South with a ridiculous 55mph limit.
 
merlion

merlion

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May 2, 2003
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RockinZ28 said:
God no. Was in the Indianapolis and Louisville area last week. Had a lot of 55mph freeways around the cities. Feels like you're crawling. Lot of people still do 75+, I was really having a hard time staying under 65. Lots of undercover cops pulling over "speeders." Just bs limits to create ticket revenue when the vast majority of drivers are going faster.
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Very true about the Louisville area. I was traveling with my daughter to a fastpitch softball tournament in Bowling Green a couple of years ago, and got a ticket just outside Louisville.

It was a part of I-71 where the speed limit drops from 70 to 65 to 55 in about a one mile stretch it seems. Popped by an unmarked in a Mustang for 77. He got me and a BMW 3-series simultaneously. Ended up costing me $194.
 
WhoBeDaPlaya

WhoBeDaPlaya

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Sep 15, 2000
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RockinZ28 said:
Wish some of those were in the areas of Houston I go to. 60-65mph on the freeways I travel. Los Angeles is the same way. I flow with traffic at 75-85 daily on the 710 South with a ridiculous 55mph limit.
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Don't want to jinx it, but I have had waaaaay less trouble with the cops here than back in IA as far as speeding goes.

I can't remember the last time my Valentine 1 detected a Ka signal, except for once last week near Spring Valley and US75N.
 
Meghan54

Meghan54

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Oct 18, 2009
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So we're finally moving back to speed limits like we had prior to '73. Thank God!

Have seen some two lane country-type highways down here in GA/SC moving back to 65mph. About time. If it was safe back in the early '70's with the vehicles being built back then (4 wheel drum brakes, no crumple zones, bare metal dashboards, no air bags, etc.), surely it's even safer these days, 40 years later.

Haven't seen any of the old speed limit signs that change posted speeds after dark...for instance, during the day the sign would read 65 mph but after dark, your headlights would reflect off the sign which would then read 60 mph.
 
M

michal1980

Diamond Member
Mar 7, 2003
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Meghan54 said:
So we're finally moving back to speed limits like we had prior to '73. Thank God!

Have seen some two lane country-type highways down here in GA/SC moving back to 65mph. About time. If it was safe back in the early '70's with the vehicles being built back then (4 wheel drum brakes, no crumple zones, bare metal dashboards, no air bags, etc.), surely it's even safer these days, 40 years later.

Haven't seen any of the old speed limit signs that change posted speeds after dark...for instance, during the day the sign would read 65 mph but after dark, your headlights would reflect off the sign which would then read 60 mph.
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different speed limits at night at least make sense. You can't see as far. I agree with you first part, cars are far safer then 40 years ago, yet whenever someone wants to raise limits you always hear about how many more deaths will occur.
 
EagleKeeper

EagleKeeper

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phucheneh said:
I don't follow your reasoning.

The interstates that pass through the middle of my city drop to 55mph limits. In rush hour, you're booking if you manage 5.5mph.

Doesn't mean that should be the limit. During lighter hours, 70 is still the norm. 'Reckless.'

...reckless is being in the 70mph sections and cruising at 45mph after a 15mph merge.
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Speed Limits (outside of school zones) are not supposed to change based on time of day.

So the limit is set to accommodate worse case conditions safely
50 vehicles per hour on a 2 lane interstate can handle a higher speed than 500 vehicles per hour on the same stretch.

The speed limit is set to accommodate the 500 vehicles for safety. Otherwise you will get a couple of idiots weaving through traffic at/above the limit while the rest of the traffic is 10 below at the designed safety.

Those idiot weavers will be the ones that cause an accident and bring the limit down to 0-10 as traffic funnels around a fender bender or jackknife.
 
A

Alienwho

Diamond Member
Apr 22, 2001
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At least the roads in the middle of nowhere are officially 80 now. The unofficial speed limit on I15 going through salt lake is still 80 despite the 65 posted signs. Just an FYI for you visitors.
 
Raduque

Raduque

Lifer
Aug 22, 2004
13,140
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75mph already burns enough gas. Do not want 80.

punjabiplaya said:
Texas reporting in at 80 and some parts at 85. It's great.
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Yeah, bunch of the empty stretches between San Antonio and Midland were at 80/85. I saw 8mpg pulling 5000lb. 13ish on the way back without the trailer.
 
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rh71

rh71

No Lifer
Aug 28, 2001
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some people claim they are afraid of driving highway altogether. Then some say they will do it if they are in the right lane only, doing like 55. I think a 65 or 70mph national limit is best. 80mph and 55-people (new minimum) on the same road is just asking for trouble.
 
BlitzPuppet

BlitzPuppet

Platinum Member
Feb 4, 2012
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rh71 said:
some people claim they are afraid of driving highway altogether. Then some say they will do it if they are in the right lane only, doing like 55. I think a 65 or 70mph national limit is best. 80mph and 55-people (new minimum) on the same road is just asking for trouble.
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Just like School/Low Residential speed limits. Make the speed limit too low and people will pay too much attention to their speed in fear of getting a ticket instead of obstacles/kids/animals in the road.

Drove back from Florida this weekend and loved the new 75MPH speed limits once you got into Texas on I10. Much better than driving down 59 doing the 60MPH speed limit.
 
punjabiplaya

punjabiplaya

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Nov 12, 2006
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RockinZ28 said:
Wish some of those were in the areas of Houston I go to. 60-65mph on the freeways I travel. Los Angeles is the same way. I flow with traffic at 75-85 daily on the 710 South with a ridiculous 55mph limit.
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You're never going to see 80 in the city. But I rarely see anyone doing less than 70 in the left lane on any freeway here.
 
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