Evaluating the impacts of speed limit policy alternatives.

Details

• Creators:
  Savolainen, Peter ; Gates, Timothy ; Hacker, Elizabeth ; Davis, Amelia ; Frazier, Sterling ; Russo, Brendan ; Rista, Emira ; Parker, Martin ; Mannering, Fred ; Schneider, William
• Corporate Creators:
  Wayne State University
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  • Speed limits
  • Rural highways
  • Highway safety
  • Traffic crashes
  • Fatalities
  • Crash rates
  • Benefit cost analysis
  • Crash risk forecasting
  • Recommendations
  • Surveys
• Publication/ Report Number:
  RC-1609
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Michigan
• Corporate Publisher:
  Michigan. Dept. of Transportation. Office of Research Administration
• Abstract:
  As of June 2014, Michigan is one of eight states with a differential speed limit in place on its rural ; freeways, which sets a maximum speed of 70 mph for passenger vehicles and 60 mph for trucks and ; buses. In select urban environments, these speed limits are both reduced to a uniform 55 mph limit. ; Legislation was introduced in early 2014 that proposed increases to these speed limits. In order to ; ascertain the potential impacts of these proposed speed limit increases, this research examined a broad ; range of traffic safety, operational, environmental, and economic data. This study involved a ; comprehensive state-of-the-art review of prior research on the relationships between traffic speed, safety, ; and crash risk. A survey was conducted of state agency practices with respect to speed limit ; establishment and another survey was conducted to obtain feedback on proposed changes from the ; trucking industry. National fatality data were collected and analyzed to ascertain the effects of speed ; limit policies on traffic fatalities, with specific emphasis on maximum speed limits and the effects of ; uniform vs. differential limits on urban and rural interstates. Further analyses were conducted at the ; disaggregate level to examine crash trends on Michigan freeways. These results were supplemented by ; the analysis of field speed data that were collected on freeways in Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. ; Differences in mean speeds, 85th percentile speeds, and the standard deviation in speeds among passenger ; cars, trucks, and buses were examined with respect to the speed limit policies in place at each of 160 ; roadway locations. Based upon the results of the fatality and speed data analyses, a benefit-cost analysis ; of the proposed speed limit change was conducted in consideration of both road user and agency costs. ; Recommendations were presented to aid in decision-making related to speed limit policies.
  More +
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  2013-0070
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/27845/dot_27845_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 5.78 MB]
• Collection(s):
  US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:908c699c5e5c4b6ae6398112ec3ea55b48c29a37d07cf62f1213a233d2f9aa27fe09595b03d0ab32a2fd6b3471ed1b97a4484c24822d99714fd7ed1f856fdcfa