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Texas approves highest US speed limit

By David Zalstein |
FIND DEALS

The Texas Transportation Commission has approved the highest speed limit in the US, allowing motorists to legally travel at 85mph (137km/h).

The 66km toll road stretch of Texas’ State Highway 130, running between Austin and San Antonio, will be the first to have an 85mph speed limit when it opens on November 11.

The 137km/h limit is not only 7km/h above the highest legal limit in Australia – the Northern Territory’s 130km/h – but also above the 75mph (120km/h) limit more common throughout the US.

US reports say the state’s contract with toll operators sees the state collect a $67 million ($64 million) up-front payment, or a percentage of future toll profits, if the speed limit is 80mph or lower, but this amount reaches $100 million ($96 million) or a higher take of toll revenues if maintained at the 85mph limit.

Spokesman for the American non-profit Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Russ Rader said that while higher speed limits allow people to get to their destinations faster, the trade-off is more crashes and more highway deaths.

“The research is clear… when speed limits go up, fatalities go up,” Rader said.

Tell us what you think. Should toll roads carry higher speed limits?

Image credit: AP Photo/Statesman.com, Ricardo B. Brazziell


 

  • nickdl

    Yes I’d be happy to pay more to go faster, but only on the condition that I can actually go faster. If traffic prevents people doing 85 then why should they have to pay the premium? It’s like when they do works on CityLink and lower the limit to 40km/h and then you’re still charged the full amount.

    • Zaccy16

      Well said

  • Henry Toussaint

     I think 120-130km should be the legal limit on most freeways and rural Highways!

    • Zaccy16

      exactly! speed doesn’t always kill, reckless driving, drink driving and lack of driving training is more of a issue, wheels magazine is doing a very good campaign about this and speed cameras at the moment, speed limits are horrible in this country

      • Henry Toussaint

        Why don’t P platers drive at the full speed limit in other states like NSW drive the full limit as well? it’s more dangerous for them doing 90km/h if they’re in the left lane and someone doing 100km/h changes into that lane they have to slow down or people not concentrating properly will most likely tailgate them…Silly!  

        • Zaccy16

          Exactly! its common sense that everyone should travel at the same speed

  • Schn

    It’s not when speed goes up, fatalities go up. It’s reckless driving. Not keeping a safe distance, not head checking, not knowing defensive driving, not being alert. Plus, I think if you keep the same speed as everyone, while not doing all of the aforementioned all of the above, then crashes are less likely to occur. But that’s ideally. Realistically, many people don’t follow the above. Hence, a crash can occur and also, since it is a higher speed, then yes, it is more likely you can die. 

  • Zaccy16

    Electric cars will be at the absolute max at this speed!

    • Ben

      Ignorant comment Zaccy16

  • PSY

    People will die

    • Noddy of Toyland

      As they always have champ, gangnam style.

    • JD

      no. revenue will die.

    • zej

      Well, either that or some people are immortal.

  • diesel

    we have enough data from NT to prove that 130 km/h is more than safe enough for all other states in Australia. When will the cops and politicians get of their fat arses and catch-up to the rest of the world? Obviously revenue is far more important than common sense and the Governments would probably loose 30% of their projected revenue within the first 12 months of trialling the 130 km/h limit in Victoria or NSW.

    • Zaccy16

      Well said! i live in geelong and every 1-2 weeks go on the hour trip on the M1 to Melbourne and that road is 4-5 lanes wide in some places, it could easily have a speed limit more than 100 kph! it is a very safe road with few corners, i don’t understand how this road can have the same speed limit as a one lane dark and dangerous country road, it doesn’t make sense

      • diesel

        a few years ago i remember at Mt Buller seeing a 100km/h speed limit sign, just outside of the Village area. I doubt if even Craig Lowndes could achieve this speed in a V8 super car. Ive seen similar speed limits on country roads with single lanes, and yet on the Monash Freeway we can still only do 100km/h. Where’s the logic in that??

        • Zaccy16

          Exactly! the government really really need to review speed limits!

          • John

             Be careful what you wish for. When governments review speed limits, they usually go down, not up.

          • Zaccy16

            Your right there unfortunately John, we live in a nanny state 

          • JamesB

            Until we stop being pushovers and start fighting for our rights as hefty road tax payers, they will just keep putting unwanted laws into place and reap even more revenue from us.

    • Force-15

      Really? Even when fatalities INCREASED as a result from placing a 130 km/h limit on NT roads? From what I’ve heard this was due to drivers focusing less on the road because they had to keep an eagle eye in the speedometer as has become customary in other states and territories nowadays. Another disadvantage of removing the unrestricted speed zones was that car manufacturers can no longer test cars in Australia for high-speed, high heat testing. For example, Porsche stopped doing high-speed testing in the NT after the speed limits were introduced. From what I remember they perform these tests in South Africa now.

      • JamesB

        No limit = no revenue

  • Davo

    I know skinny mountain roads with 80k/h and 100k/h speed limits that the only cars that can reach and hold that limit are super cars, even they will be pushing to stay on their side of the road at that speed yet a few minutes drive away is a highway with the same speed limit cruising through open country a lot of the way clear vision all around, yet the other road has bushland right up to the road. If it is deemed safe for me to do 100 in a windy mountain road surly it would be deemed safe for me to do 120 or 130 on the highway. 

    • ABCDEFG

      Don’t over estimate supercars. They may accelerate 5 times quicker than a Hyundai Excel. But their 100kmh – 0 braking times are almost the same. The coefficent of rubber on bitument is about 1 plus minus a bit. Don’t believe what the smallbois fanbois say.

      • ABCDEFG

        Coefficent of friction of rubber on bitument.

      • diesel

        oh you carnt be serious??!! Are you really claiming that a Hyundai Excel will have the same braking performance as a Ferrari or Porsche? Go and do some research and then revise your comments. FYI – A 911 Porsche will stop in 33 metres and a Hyundai is around 51 metres.

        • ABCDEFG

          Google Hyundai or Yaris 60mph-0 braking distance and compare it with some of the fanbois “supercars”. There’s not much in it, probably around a few %.

          The reason why so many dumb fanbois in supercars get into accidents is because they think their supercars could stop 5x quicker than a Hyundai as their supercars could accelerate 5x than a Hyundai.

          • ABCDEFG

            In another study…BRAKING DISTANCE FROM 100 km/hr (real world testing)
            Subaru Impreza WRX  37.38mPorsche 911 Turbo S (2011)  39.62mHolden VE Commodore SV6  39.86mSuzuki Alto  43.56m
            Source: Motor Magazine (Aust)
            There was another study I read that has a Hyundais with shorter distance than some super cars.
            It’s about time the fanbois shop badge worship and pickup a physics book. It could save their lives and reduce the road toll.

      • Davo

        I am just trying to say why is there a road that is marked 100km/h with a hairpin bend on it (it is not a tight hairpin) and plenty of tight corners have 100km/h speed limit when the freeway a few minutes drive away has the same limit. Maybe a supercar can do the limit easy on that road or maybe it can not but in a daily drive car like Hyundais you will not be able to hit the speed limit bar about once or twice as long as you are willing to jump on the brakes hard shortly after.  

  • bg

    its all about the person behind the wheel and the government needs to stop trying to control everyones driving, australia has slow speed limits compared to the rest of the world, making cars go faster and slowing the speed limit down doesnt make sense at all

  • Brett

    How many of you guys have lived in the outback? I lived south of Katherine NT for three years and travelled accross many states. The higher speed limit works in remote areas because of fewer cars, wider roads (including wide mowing) and very good distance visibilty. Drivers are also more alert of the surroundings due to high wildlife issues. Having now been living outside of Adelaide for nine months I can say that the people are not ready for it in denser areas. Road manners are atrocious, with the majority sitting in the right lane, not checking blind spots and showing a complete ignorance to what skill is actually required to drive a car. I’m all for the speed limit in regional/remote areas, just not 130kph on denser freeways. You people will just abuse it and ruin it for everyone.

    • diesel

      Brett, if its done in Europe with 370 million people, then it can certainly be done on our roads. Its up to the Governments to completely change the driver testing system and all drivers should also have advanced driving courses. We need continual TV advertising that educate drivers on roads laws and basic common manors, otherwise the last time people received any independant advice was probably back when they were a pimply 16 year old and learning to drive. There is simply too much of a gap in the “continual education” process and this includes how to safely drive at 130 km/h.

      • horsie

        yea in europe where they have 100 car pileup’s on a regular basis. 

  • Sumpguard

    On the Hume Highway raising the speed limit to 130km/h would actually help save lives. Thiss road was designed for a cruise speed of 130km/h “20 YEARS AGO”.

         That would mean a 90 minute saving between Melbourne and Sydney and as fatigue is actually the biggest killer it is logical that 7 hours behind the wheel is a damned site btter than 8.5! 

         Our government(s) are tax hungry junkies so it won’t happen!!

    • Zaccy16

      Exactly! stinking government!

    • diesel

      spot on! Its the time on the road i.e. fatigue that kills not “speed”. Ive also seen so many “street racers” in the CBD areas of Melbourne & Sydney that scream around in 2nd & 3rd gear around city streets, but the same “type” of drivers are often seen “cruising” at only 90 km/h on freeways out of a city, probably because nobody can see them and that they can not impress any girls at the local shops.

  • filippo

    The only way to see reasonable speed limits on our roads would be to rework how the states receive money from the federal government. At the moment they desperately need speed camera revenue, and do their best to not look ridiculous when justifying disproportionate fines and even more revenue cameras. And the majority of people suck it up, or pretend that an alternative state government wouldn’t be as greedy.

    It’s unfortunate that politics gets in the way of saving lives.

  • Car Fanatic

    WTF? Supercars don’t have better stopping distances than Hyundais from 100?

    What planet are you on. From 100 an Accent takes approx 48 metres, a Gallardo does it in 34. That’s Significantly less you clown.

  • No Fears

    Many Australians have really poor attitudes to driving & other drivers.Slowing down at roundabouts
    seems optional & are seen as overtaking zones, these drivers of course won’t be satisfied at 130km/h they will add another 10k’s over easily & see nothing wrong with this on wet greasy roads.
    The its all about me generation & their offspring driving at 130km/h while fiddling with the mp3 or equivalent,texting,will be interesting.
    Reaction times will be the same no matter what is driven regardless, few consider this.
    Amazing how quickly things can happen at speed before you have time to react,the actual stopping distance of the vehicle might help in a catastrophe if you are lucky but in a lot of cases it is all over.
    Distance travelled at 100km/h is around 28meters per second,130kmh around 36meters per second,think about adding the driver reaction time as well. 

  • Frankie

    130km/h? Pffft wake me up when we get there.

    This should be the limit in dense suburbs and school zones. Freeways should be 200km/h.

    Or… Maybe we should all just settle down and show a bit more patience when driving.

  • john

    I am fine with the 100 – 110 current limit out on country roads. However I think the speed limit should be limitless when we get to the country towns so then you can put your foot down and get through these terrible places as fast as possible rather than being forced to slow down and endure the pain!

  • cobb

    Living in Darwin, I’m well versed with our 130km/h speed limit, along with the open speed limits we had prior to 2007. These speed limits occur on the four major Highways (the Arnhem, Stuart, Barkly and Victoria) and are well outside built-up areas or areas where traffic congestion may be high. There are 110 and 100 speed limits as well. The greatest thing I notice about driving at 130 compared to 110 is how much more alert you are an how much more you concentrate. In my mind, this combined with reduced driving time, are the major factors as to why a higher speed limit can actually be safer. 

    • Zaccy16

      Well said! you do feel more alert!

  • Chart

    Having been to the West coast of USA, I think their road system is much better than our road system in Australia, the highways/freeways have many lanes like 8, they have interchanges very often and the lanes themselves are wide compared to fe narrow ones here in Sydney.

    But one thing I noticed in USA is that in the highway/freeways people drive fast and the traffic flows very well, it’s like everyone is driving the same speed.

    In Sydney M4 it’s pretty much a hazard, you got people driving slow all over the lanes, and the people who want to overtake doing it the wrong way, and you have like 10000 trucks going by the lanes. Such a mess

  • roy

    Having just come back from the USA I have to admit that their roads and their traffic flow is just amazing. Over there, if the speed limit is 70mph then the vast majority of drivers will be doing 85mph. They all just speed together and its okay because everyone is doing it. I dont think this will make much difference for them as they all mostly do around 8085 on freeways; who knows maybe now they will drive at 90+

  • kf

    “The research is clear… when speed limits go up, fatalities go up,” ….. do a research on me, the faster i go the more i concentrate, the less i become bored, less chance i’ll fall asleep

  • Basil Exposition

    They should reduce the open road speed limit to 80kms per hour to save lives… Totally irresponsible move by Texas.

  • Wile E Coyote

    Our speed limits are about the same as in the 50s and 60s.
    But cars have improved 1000% and roads are also better.
    So why not have higher speed limits?
    Anyway you are not forced to drive on the limit- drive at the speed you feel in control.
    Oh I forgot ….the moron factor.
    Right lane huggers , tailgaters at 110kph, overtaking risk takers,wet weather wheel spinners etc .
    These people are idiots no matter what the limit is.

    • Chevrons

      That’s a good point. Cars have improved so much over the years yet it seems that our road limits are lower in many cases.

      Also consistency is an issue, how many times can you be driving on the one road yet the speed limit (and cruise control) constantly changes. Sydney’s roads are terrible for this, even motorways – M4, M5, F6 not to mention the M2.

      • PM

        The F3 between Sydney and Newcastle should be at least 130km’s as this is one of the best 6 lane highways in Australia, the 110 speed limit doesn’t stop the morning and afternoon peak hours from doing 130 anyway….  

      • Zaccy16

        Yeah cars are alot safer and more safer at speed than ever before, i drive a polo tsi dsg and is great and stable at the legal limit, compare this to my grandfathers 1995 ford courier 2.6 dual cab and their has been alot of progress in the last 17 years!

        • Zaccy16

          Also consistency of speed is definitely a issue on roads people can’t seem to stay at a constant speed. going up to Melbourne from geelong i had my cruise control on a constant 100-101 in the middle lane and i kept having to click cancel and hit the breaks because of the inconsiscent speed of the liberty in front of me! very annoing!

          • Chevrons

            I do hate that too. Bring on a designated cruise control/speed limit lane I say!

          • Zaccy16

            That would e a very good idea!

  • JamesB

    When Americans fought against mobile cameras, they were no longer in operation. Being in one of these vehicles turned out to be suicide back there. But they are still lurking around Melbourne, even past business hours, and Sydney recently copied the scheme. If we keep letting them do this, don’t be surprised to see a multa nova right outside your garage.