Call to lower US speed limits

While the NHVR and NTC work towards achieving a uniform set of road laws and regulations for heavy vehicles here in Australia, on the other side of the Pacific the American Trucking Associations (ATA) is calling on the Obama Administration to introduce a national and lower truck speed limit.

The ATA has once again urged American authorities to introduce mandatory electronic speed limiters for the nation's heavy vehicles, and has reiterated its request that all large trucks be limited to no more than 65 miles per hour (105km/h).

According to ATA President and CEO, Bill Graves, the advocacy body has been fighting for a national and lower speed limit for trucks for many years.

"In 2006, as part of our longstanding commitment to highway safety, ATA petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to require the speed limiter on all large trucks be set in order to electronically limit their top speed to no more than 65mph," he said.

"We waited patiently until the government finally said in January 2011 they would move ahead with a speed-limiter mandate, but this common-sense regulation has been mired in bureaucracy for over four years now. It is long past time for NHTSA and FMCSA to move ahead with this rule."

Presently some 14 US states have a maximum speed limit of 75mph (121km/h) or more, while four states have an upper limit of 80mph (129km/h) or more. The national speed limit for heavy vehicles in Australia is 100km/h (62mph).

The ATA says slowing down trucks would reduce the frequency and severity of crashes while delivering major fuel savings and knock-on benefits for the environment. Lowering the speed limit will also promote a more positive image for the trucking industry, helping to prevent rogue drivers from flouting the law, says Graves.

Speeding is a contributing factor in 18 per cent of all fatal accidents involving heavy vehicles and 29 per cent of all fatal road traffic accidents in general, says the ATA, which has its work cut out for it in also calling for a lowering of the speed limit for all motorists.

"In addition to slowing truck speeds, ATA believes in slowing down all traffic," Graves says.

"That's why we back a national speed limit for all vehicles of 65mph and are disturbed by the recent trend of states raising their speed limits to 70, 75, 80 or in some areas even 85 miles per hour. These limits are reckless and are needlessly endangering millions of motorists."

For more on the American Trucking Associations' call for lower speed limits and the mandatory roll-out of electronic speed limiters, check out the clip below…