What is the problem?
Speeding increases the likelihood of being involved in a crash and
intensifies the severity of injuries sustained in a crash. Proven
countermeasures against speeding—automated enforcement
technology, vehicle technology and design, and education campaigns—are underused, which leads to more frequent speeding. And, because
posted speed limits are predominantly based on observed operating
speeds, widespread speeding can lead to an undesirable cycle of higher
speed limits, still higher operating speeds, and increased fatalities.
Despite these risks, exceeding the
posted speed limit has become
an accepted way of driving on our
nation’s roadways. Unlike impaired
driving, speeding is not socially
unacceptable, which may be one
reason speeding-related fatalities have
increased in recent years—drivers may
underestimate the risks associated
with it. After reaching a low of 9,283
fatalities in 2014, speeding-related
traffic fatalities increased to 9,723 in
2015 and 10,111 in 2016.
Although research shows speeding
impacts all road users, it is particularly
dangerous for the most vulnerable,
such as pedestrians and bicyclists.
Motorcyclists are not exempt from
the risks associated with speeding,
and they represent a disproportionate
number of crashes.
What can be done?
In 2017, we completed a special study on speeding
(SS1701), highlighting several speeding-related crashes
that could have been avoided and calling for greater use of
proven effective countermeasures.
To address the problem of speeding, the
following actions should be taken:
Regulators
- Update and promote best practices for automated speed
enforcement, addressing new technologies such as point-to-point enforcement.
- Develop and implement a program to increase the
adoption of speeding-related Model Minimum Uniform
Crash Criteria (MMUCC) Guidelines data elements and
improve consistency in law enforcement reporting of
speeding-related crashes.
- Establish a national education and enforcement
campaign similar to the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration’s Click It or Ticket.
- Develop performance standards for advanced speed-limiting
technology, such as variable speed limiters and
intelligent speed adaptation devices, for heavy vehicles—including trucks, buses, and motorcoaches—and require
that all newly manufactured heavy vehicles be equipped
with such devices.
- Encourage passenger-vehicle manufacturers to adopt
intelligent speed adaptation systems.
- Revise guidance on setting speed limits to lessen the
reliance on 85th-percentile operating speeds.
States
- Implement a comprehensive strategy to reduce speeding-related
crashes, including authorizing the use of automated
speed enforcement.
- Develop and implement a program to increase the
adoption of speeding-related MMUCC Guidelines data
elements, and improve consistency in law enforcement
reporting of speeding-related crashes.
- Revise guidance on setting speed limits to lessen the
reliance on 85th-percentile operating speeds.
Drivers
- Follow posted speed limits; drive even slower in poor
weather conditions
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