Summary Of State Speed Laws - NHTSA

DOT HS 811 769December 2013Summary of State Speed LawsTwelfth EditionCurrent as of October 8, 2012

DISCLAIMERThis publication is distributed by the U.S. Department of Transportation,National Highway Traffic SafetyAdministration, in the interest of informationexchange. The opinions, findings, and conclusions expressed in thispublication are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Departmentof Transportation or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.The United States Government assumes no liability for its contents or usethereof. If trade names, manufacturers’ names, or specific products arementioned, it is because they are considered essential to the object of thepublication and should not be construed as an endorsement. The UnitedStates Government does not endorse products or manufacturers.

TABLE OF CONTENTSINTRODUCTION. iiiOVERVIEW NARRATIVE OF KEY PROVISIONS OF STATE SPEED LAWS. vKey Provisions of State Speed Laws through October 8, 2012 . viALABAMA . 1ALASKA . 5ARIZONA . 8ARKANSAS. 13CALIFORNIA . 18COLORADO . 25CONNECTICUT. 31DELAWARE . 35DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA . 41FLORIDA . 45GEORGIA . 51HAWAI’I . 57IDAHO . 62ILLINOIS . 66INDIANA . 73IOWA . 78KANSAS . 83KENTUCKY . 87LOUISIANA . 91MAINE . 95MARYLAND . 100MASSACHUSETTS . 105MICHIGAN . 109MINNESOTA . 114MISSISSIPPI . 119MISSOURI . 124MONTANA . 129NEBRASKA . 134SUMMARY OF SPEED LAWS, 12TH EDITIONi

NEVADA . 140NEW HAMPSHIRE . 146NEW JERSEY. 151NEW MEXICO . 157NEW YORK . 161NORTH CAROLINA . 167NORTH DAKOTA . 174OHIO. 179OKLAHOMA . 184OREGON . 189PENNSYLVANIA . 194PUERTO RICO . 200RHODE ISLAND . 204SOUTH CAROLINA . 210SOUTH DAKOTA . 215TENNESSEE . 220TEXAS . 225UTAH . 231VERMONT. 236VIRGINIA . 241WASHINGTON . 248WEST VIRGINIA. 254WISCONSIN . 260WYOMING . 266SUMMARY OF SPEED LAWS, 12TH EDITIONii

INTRODUCTIONThe National Highway Traffic SafetyAdministration is responsible for reducingvehicle-related fatalities and injuries on ournation’s highways. Research has shown thateffective State and local traffic safety laws playan important role in helping to reduce motorvehicle crashes. This publication provides thestatus of State statutes or regulations that areconcerned with either speed limit or speedrelated violations. Local laws are not reported.provides that a slow speed is permissible whenreduced speed is necessary for safe operation orcompliance with law.This document includes a summary chart whichidentifies the key provisions of State speedinglaws, as well as two graphical representations ofkey speed related legislation by State. Inaddition, the narrative provides a detaileddescription of these laws in every State, theDistrict of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Lawsdescribed in this document include basic speedlaws, as well as other speed-related laws (seeExplanations below).This documentationincludes code and case law citations to assistindividuals conducting additional research inthis area of the law, and which can be used tofacilitate the comparison of State laws in thesubject areas.Drag Racing:Either as part of the offense of highway racingor as a separate statutory crime, the offense of“drag racing” is usually defined as the operationof two or more vehicles from a point side byside at accelerating speed in competitive attemptto outdistance each other, or the operation of oneor more vehicles over a common selectedcourse, from the same point to the same point,for the purpose of comparing the relative speedsor power of acceleration of such vehicles orvehicles within a certain distance or time limit.Racing on the Highway:This is usually defined as driving any vehicle inany race, speed competition or contest, drag raceor acceleration contest, test of physicalendurance, exhibition of speed or acceleration,or for the purpose of making a speed record.Reckless Driving:This is generally defined as driving any vehiclein willful or wanton disregard for the safety ofpersons or property. Note: Speed is notnecessarily a factor in this offense.EXPLANATIONSBasic Speed Rule:This rule requires vehicle operators to drive at aspeed that is reasonable and prudent. As acorollary to this rule, State laws usually providethat every person shall drive at a safe andappropriate speed when approaching andcrossing an intersection or railroad gradecrossing, when approaching and going around acurve, when approaching a hill crest, whentraveling upon any narrow or winding roadway,and when special hazards exist with respect topedestrians or other traffic, or by reason ofweather or highway conditions.Statutory Speed Limit:A “statutory speed limit” is one specificallyprovided for under a State's traffic code (rules ofthe road). Such limits may vary by highway type(e.g., interstate) or by location (e.g., urbandistrict). State laws may or may not require thatthese limits be posted.Posted (Maximum) Speed Limit:Even though specific speed limits may havebeen established via legislation, State lawsusually allow either State or local authorities toset highway speed limits above or below thestatutory ones. Prior to taking such action on anyportion of a highway, the law normally requiresthat governmental authorities conduct a study todetermine the safe speed limit for that part of thehighway. State laws may also allow suchauthorities to specify different speed limits on allMinimum Speed Rule:This rule prohibits a person from operating amotor vehicle at such a slow speed as to impedethe normal and reasonable movement of traffic.However, in order to avoid a possible conflictwith the basic speed rule, the law normallySUMMARY OF SPEED LAWS, 12TH EDITIONiii

under certain circumstances, as described bystatutory provision. Lastly, in some States nostatutory provision exists and it cannot beinferred through existing legislation or case lawthe status of the utilization of automated speedenforcement.or selected highways (or portions thereof) eitherfor various times of the day or for various typesof vehicles (e.g., trucks).Speed limits established under these laws are noteffective until appropriate speed limit signs areposted on the highway. Caution: This documentdoes not report the speed limits that have beenestablished via such laws.For the purposes of this Digest the status of theStates’ laws with regards to automated speedenforcement is categorized as follows:Speed Law Sanctions:Except as noted, the criminal and administrativelicensing sanctions given are the same for anyoffense listed under the heading “Basis for aSpeed Law Violation.” Important: Unlessotherwise stated, the fine sanctions listed in thisdocument do NOT include court costs or bailschedule forfeitures.No by S.P.: Automated speed enforcement isexpressly prohibited by statutory provision.Yes by S.P.: Automated speed enforcement isexpressly permitted by statutory provision.Permitted (without S.P.): Based on relatedlegislation or case law it can be inferred thatautomated speed enforcement is permitted.Highway and Street:In order to insure that the terms “highway” and“street” are synonymous and interchangeable,many State laws define both as the entire widthbetween the boundary lines of every waypublicly maintained when any part thereof isopen to the use of the public for purposes ofvehicular travel.Limited: Automated speed enforcement isexpressly permitted under certain conditions,i.e. when adopted by local governments orunder certain conditions.No Statutory Provision: There is nolegislation or case law addressing automatedspeed enforcement.Automated Speed Enforcement:A number of States utilize automated speedenforcement, i.e., the use of imaging technologyby law enforcement to determine if a violationof the speed law has occurred. Legislativeprovisions vary widely regarding this issue. Insome cases the use of automated speedenforcement is expressly permitted through astatutory provision. In other cases the use ofautomated speed enforcement is expresslyprohibited by statutory provision. In still othercases no statutory provision exists, yet it can beinferred by case law that automated speedenforcement is used in that State. In some Statesautomated speed enforcement is permitted onlyCommercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) Operators:Generally among the States, a commercial motorvehicle is defined as a vehicle designed to carrypassengers or property and has a gross vehicleweight of 26,000 lbs., or more, is designed totransport 16 or more persons, or is transportinghazardous materials that require such vehicle beplacarded in accordance with State or Federallaws.SUMMARY OF SPEED LAWS, 12TH EDITIONiv

OVERVIEW NARRATIVE OF KEY PROVISIONS OF STATE SPEED LAWS(As of October 8, 2012)Prior to 1995, Federal funding was withheldfrom those States that did not establish amaximum posted speed limit of 55 miles perhour (mph). In 1995, Congress repealed the 55mph National Maximum Speed Limit and gaveStates the power to establish maximum speedlimits. Since that time, most of the States haveincreased the maximum posted speed limitabove 55 mph for passenger vehicles, trucks, orfor both. Currently, only four States and theDistrict of Columbia have maximum postedspeed limits of 55 mph or lower for cars. OneState has established a maximum posted speedlimit of 85 mph; thirteen States have establishedmaximum posted speed limits of 75 mph;another seventeen have established maximumposted speed limits of 70 mph.OTHER CRIMINAL ACTIONS RELATEDTO SPEEDINGMost States also have laws defining otherspecific criminal actions related to speeding.For example, forty-five States and Puerto Ricohave passed laws regarding Racing on Highway,and Maine and Vermont are the only States thathave not passed laws regarding RecklessDriving. Less commonly, twenty-two Stateshave passed laws regarding negligent/carelessdriving, and ten States have passed lawsregarding aggressive driving. In many Statesthese speed-related offenses are considered to becriminal actions.AUTOMATED SPEED ENFORCEMENTA recent trend in the enforcement of speedrelated traffic violations is the utilization ofautomated speed enforcement technology.Currently 14 States, the District of Columbiaand Puerto Rico have legislation permitting theuse of automated speed enforcement to somedegree (Yes by S.P. and Limited). An additionalfour States utilize automated speed enforcementwithout explicit legislation or case law. FourteenStates explicitly prohibit the use of automatedspeed enforcement, while 18 States do notaddress this issue legislatively.THE ADJUDICATION OF SPEEDVIOLATIONS AND SANCTIONS—FINES,JAIL TIME, and LICENSING ACTIONSAll 50 States, the District of Columbia andPuerto Rico impose fines for speed lawviolations. State fines for violations of speedlaws can increase substantially with repeatedviolations—maximum State fines vary from 50.00 to 2,500.While many States do not identify maximum jailsentences for speed law violations, twenty-fourStates do. The maximum jail time imposed bythe States for speed law violations variesdramatically, from 15 days to one year. In someStates, legislation permits the imposition ofsentences that include both fines and jail time;other States permit sentences of either a fine orjail for speed violations.Details regarding these specific issues for eachState, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Ricoare provided in the Key Provisions of StateSpeed Laws Charts and in the State-by-Stateanalysis in this document.State laws often also provide for specificlicensing actions that may be imposed upondrivers for speed law violations. Many Statesemploy a system of points on the driver’slicense, and all States provide for the suspensionor revocation of a driver’s license, dependingupon the violation.SUMMARY OF SPEED LAWS, 12TH EDITIONv