Illinois Governor: No Speed Increase on Interstates

September 2, 2014

  • September 2, 2014 at 3:32 pm
    Steve Doner says:
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    Its not just an increase from 65 to 70. The real benefit of this legislation is that it would also increase limits on Tollways which are still egregiously underposted at 55.

    If safety is really the goal, the governor would see to it that speed limits are set in accordance with sound engineering practices at the 85th percentile speed for all traffic (trucks too). Speed limits established to maximize safety would be set at 75 to 80 in rural areas and 70 in most urban areas with a few deep urban zones at 60 to 65 (with truck limits the same or, at most, 5 mph lower). Even two lane highways should be posted at 65 in rural areas (as they were before 1973).

    I fear this may never happen because there is so much revenue at stake. The governor, IDOT, the police and especially the insurance lobby, including AAA, (which earns billions in profits from ticket surcharges on mostly safe drivers) would rather keep dangerously low speed limits than jeopardize their revenue streams. The two largest auto insurance companies in the world are based in Illinois. I fear that no Illinois governor will ever risk going against that powerful lobby. Hopefully our house and senate will display the same courage in the veto-override session that they did when passing the original bill in 2013 and the new bill which clarifies the intent of the original bill – ALL Tollways should be posted at 70 mph.

    Independent studies always reach the same conclusion unless they have been funded by groups like the IIHS (Insurance Institute for Higher Surcharges) or others with a connection to the revenue stream. The science has not changed in 70 years. What changed is we had a failed national experiment with speed prohibition (55 national limit) which accomplished none of its goals and led to widespread disrespect of the law. It has been 40 years now and we are still inching our way back to the limits that were in place decades ago when cars were junk wagons by comparison to today.

    Steve Doner
    Life Member and Former
    Illinois Chapter Coordinator
    National Motorists Association

  • September 2, 2014 at 3:33 pm
    Steve Doner says:
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    If safety is really the goal, the governor would see to it that speed limits are set in accordance with sound engineering practices at the 85th percentile speed for all traffic (trucks too). Speed limits established to maximize safety would be set at 75 to 80 in rural areas and 70 in most urban areas with a few deep urban zones at 60 to 65 (with truck limits the same or, at most, 5 mph lower). Even two lane highways should be posted at 65 in rural areas (as they were before 1973).

    I fear this may never happen because there is so much revenue at stake. The governor, IDOT, the police and especially the insurance lobby, including AAA, (which earns billions in profits from ticket surcharges on mostly safe drivers) would rather keep dangerously low speed limits than jeopardize their revenue streams. The two largest auto insurance companies in the world are based in Illinois. I fear that no Illinois governor will ever risk going against that powerful lobby. Hopefully our house and senate will display the same courage in the veto-override session that they did when passing the original bill in 2013 and the new bill which clarifies the intent of the original bill – ALL Tollways should be posted at 70 mph.

    Independent studies always reach the same conclusion unless they have been funded by groups like the IIHS (Insurance Institute for Higher Surcharges) or others with a connection to the revenue stream. The science has not changed in 70 years. What changed is we had a failed national experiment with speed prohibition (55 national limit) which accomplished none of its goals and led to widespread disrespect of the law. It has been 40 years now and we are still inching our way back to the limits that were in place decades ago when cars were junk wagons by comparison to today.

    Steve Doner
    Life Member and Former
    Illinois Chapter Coordinator
    National Motorists Association

  • September 2, 2014 at 3:48 pm
    Steve Doner says:
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    Speed Limit Veto: Clueless, or Corrupt?

    The Illinois General Assembly passed SB2015 by “veto-proof” majorities of 48-6 in the Senate and 111-4 in the House. In spite of the overwhelming support for this bill, which merely clarifies the 2013 speed limit bill that Quinn did sign, the governor vetoed this clarifying legislation. What could be the true motive behind this symbolic, but meaningless, veto which is sure to be over-ridden in November?

    One possibility is that he is oblivious to the science cited by transportation engineers which says that speed limits best support traffic safety when set at the 85th percentile speed (which is 70 or higher for all metro Chicago Tollways). If transportation engineers say a 70 mph speed limit would be safest for Chicago, that should be the end of the story. Sadly politics gets in the way. (I wrote a number of op-eds last fall which explain the science and these can be found by doing an internet search – I won’t repeat all that here.)

    To understand the other possibility, follow the money. With an election coming up in November, Quinn’s veto may help keep him in the good graces of those in the speeding ticket revenue stream such as AAA, traffic attorneys, police agencies, the court system, government agencies, the Northwestern University Traffic School, speed camera companies, etc. I firmly believe that the governor, and all of the groups that are directly or indirectly in the ticket revenue stream, are more concerned about preserving this revenue flow than they are about highway safety.

    Some of the beneficiaries of traffic ticket revenue are obvious and need no explanation. Other beneficiaries, insurance companies for example, are not as well understood. Insurance companies reap billions in profits from surcharges billed to mostly safe drivers when those drivers receive tickets for driving safely in areas with under-posted limits. AAA sells auto insurance, so AAA is in the revenue stream and benefits from under-posted limits. Drivers can sometimes keep traffic tickets hidden from their insurers if they attend traffic school. For this reason, the Northwestern University Traffic School is in the revenue stream.

    One can hardly overstate the influence of insurance companies in the state of Illinois. The world’s two largest auto insurance companies (Allstate and State Farm) are headquartered right here in Illinois along with several others. In the April issue of Crain’s Chicago Business, one of the cover stories had this headline: “Quinn to Insurers: Welcome – Governor wants $5 million marketing push to lure more insurers to Illinois”. One could almost sympathize with the governor for wanting to please our corporate citizens in the insurance industry if not for the inconvenient truth that the 55 mph speed limit on area expressways is resulting in loss of lives.

    Before closing, I’d like to clear up a common misconception. Speed LIMITS do not equate to SPEED. It has been proven time and again that speed limits can be increased or decreased by as much as 15 mph and the resulting change in actual travel speeds is only about 1-2 mph on average. This has been recently demonstrated right here in suburban Chicago. When the southern leg of I-355 had its limit increased from 55 to 65 a few years ago, the 85th percentile speed only changed by about one mph, according to Tollway engineers. Assertions by naysayers that speed limit increases lead to higher speeds are simply false. What does happen is that those few well-meaning souls who actually drive 55 begin to blend in with the rest of traffic. This results in smoother flow, less weaving and significantly improved safety.

    Let’s hope that House and Senate members will display the same courage in the veto-override session that they did when passing the original bill in 2013 and the clarifying bill in 2014. If you value traffic safety, tell your representatives that you want them to vote for an over-ride.

    Steve Doner, Wheaton
    Life Member and Former
    Illinois Chapter Coordinator
    National Motorists Association



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