AUSTIN, Texas
(AP) -- Texas will soon open a stretch of highway with the highest
speed limit in the country, giving eager drivers a chance to rip through
a trip between two of the state's largest metropolitan areas.
The
Texas Transportation Commission has approved a speed limit of 85 mph
for a 41-mile toll road several miles east of the increasingly crowded
Interstate 35 corridor between Austin and San Antonio.
"I would love it," Austin resident Alan Guckian said. "Sometimes it's fun to just open it up."
But while some drivers will want to test their horsepower and radar detectors, others are asking if safety is taking a backseat.
"The
research is clear that when speed limits go up, fatalities go up," said
Russ Rader, a spokesman for the nonprofit Insurance Institute for
Highway Safety. He said higher speed limits get people to their
destinations faster, "but the trade-off is more crashes and more highway
deaths."
A 2009 report in the American
Journal of Public Health studied traffic fatalities in the U.S. from
1995 to 2005 and found that more than 12,500 deaths were attributable to
increases in speed limits on all kinds of roads.
The
study also said that rural highways showed a 9.1 percent increase in
fatalities on roads where speed limits were raised, but did not cite
specific numbers in those instances.
Most
highways in the U.S. top out at 75 mph, and there are no longer any
roads in the U.S. with no speed limit. Some highways in rural West Texas
and Utah have 80 mph speed limits.
The Texas
Legislature last year approved 85 mph limits for some new stretches of
road. The strip of toll road running from Austin to Seguin, about 35
miles northeast of San Antonio, will be the first to allow that speed
when it opens in November.
The Texas
Transportation Commission, which is appointed by Gov. Rick Perry,
approved the 85 mph speed limit at a public meeting on Aug. 30. A
transportation department spokesman said commissioners would not comment
on their decision.
Agency officials had
previously said they would study the toll road's topography, the speeds
that most drivers were reaching, and the safety of access points and
cross sections before approving the 85 mph speed limit.
"Safety is our top priority and tests have shown the designated speed is a safe one," agency spokeswoman Veronica Beyer said.
During
his daily commute from Round Rock, north of Austin, to his job in San
Antonio, Steve Marcy sometimes uses another part of the toll road. The
section he drives now has an 80 mph speed limit. Marcy said he'd be
comfortable driving 85, but would be concerned about others driving
vehicles that are not in good condition.
"A tire blowout (at 85 mph) could be a big hazard," Marcy said.
Chris
Lippincott, spokesman for SH 130 Concession Co. that is building the
road, said the company is committed to operating a safe highway.
"On
any road, drivers hold the key to safety based on traffic, travel
conditions and the capabilities of their own vehicles," Lippincott said.
Toll
prices have not yet been set for the new section. Marcy predicted the
higher speed limit would attract new drivers, but said most may not
think it's worth paying the tolls.
"For most people I talk to, it's a cost issue," Marcy said.
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
