Highway Speed Limits Have Increased
After many years, and despite increases in personal injury and wrongful death associated with traffic speed rates, Oregon's highway speed limit has increased. Oregon law defines the maximum speed that a motorist travelling on Oregon roadways can legally drive without being cited or arrested. Driving over the Oregon speed limit can result in a traffic citation, fine, license suspension, or even criminal arrest. For example, there is a mandatory drivers suspension for driving over 100 mph even if passing or overtaking another vehicle and even in rural areas. This suspension is generally enforceable in other states by way of what is known as the Driver's License Compact. Under the Compact 46 states have agreed to enforce Oregon suspensions.
Speed and Traffic Caused Personal Injury
According to the US Department of Transportation, speeding is one of the most prevalent factors contributing to traffic accidents and at a tremendous cost in personal injury and wrongful death. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that the annual economic cost to society of speeding-related accidents is $40.4 billion. Speed not only substantially contributes to the likelihood of serious personal injury, but is a contributing factor to the cause of the accident in approximately 30 percent of all fatal crashes, those in which there is a death or a wrongful death, and more than 10,000 people die in speeding-related crashes annually in the United States. As a result of statistics likes these and the increased speed limits on some roadways in Oregon, law enforcement is strictly pursuing offenders.
What are Oregon's speed limits in Central an Eastern Oregon? The following is an ODOT (Oregon Department of Transportation) statement about the changes:
"Motorists saw new speed limits on select highways in Eastern and Central Oregon as of Tuesday, March 1.
Oregon House Bill 3402 (2015) and HB 4047 (2016) raised speed limits on Interstate 84 east of The Dalles, I-82 and other select secondary state highways in eastern and central Oregon. The new laws will raise legal speeds to 70 mph for passenger vehicles and 65 mph for commercial trucks on I-84 between the Idaho border and The Dalles and on I-82 between I-84 and the Washington border. These same speed limits will apply for U.S. 95, which runs through southern Malheur County between the Nevada and Idaho borders.
In addition, sections of eight other highways will have speed limits increased to 65 mph for passenger vehicles and 60 mph for trucks. These include portions of U.S. 20, U.S. 26, U.S. 97, U.S. 197, U.S. 395, OR 31, OR 78, and OR 205.
ODOT installed signs displaying the new speed limits on I-84 and on secondary highways early this month. Motorists are reminded to obey all speed limit signs and other traffic control devices, and to adjust travel when weather, road conditions or other situations require extra caution.
Those signs displaying a speed “limit” will be subject to enforcement by the Oregon State Police as differentiated from the “basic speed rule” that applies when no “limit” is indicated.
More information, including a map showing the specific highway segments that will see the changes, copies of both house bills, updated news and information, plus links to related photos and broadcast quality video, is available at: