Colorado Department of Transportation to Revise Speed Limit in Certain Areas
Active readers of trucking industry news may remember the story of Rogel Aguilera-Mederos, whose 2019 collision caused the death of four people and his sentence was reduced from 110 years to 10. Well, the general area where that collision happened is getting a speed limit reduction after another incident occurred recently.
Details
On August 15th a truck carrying pipes spilled onto the highway, leading to the deaths of three people and injuring the driver in question. While speed was not the only factor that led to the spillage, it was a contributing one, and the various incidents on the I-70 near Wheat Ridge, Colorado are why the Colorado Department of Transportation are updating the speed limit signs in the area from 60 MPH to 55 MPH.
Speed is a topic we have covered at great length here at TopMark Funding, but as a quick refresher: each mile per hour of speed adds more kinetic energy than the last, making the collision all the more destructive. The act of applying the brakes even a second sooner can reduce the damage of an assured crash immensely. Reducing the speed limit to 55 MPH is set to reduce the force of any impact by 16%. Though some of the injuries and casualties were due to the spillage of pipes rather than the truck itself colliding, the other drivers would have been safer at a lower speed, which may be the reason why this speed limit change applies to all, as opposed to in California which has a flat 55 MPH speed limit for trucks regardless of whatever speed is allowed for cars.
“Speeding is a concern along this and all roads in the state,” CDOT wrote in a statement regarding the change. “We urge motorists to heed the speed limit and signs in construction zones and drive to the conditions, leaving plenty of space behind the vehicle ahead and drive with no distractions.”
Conclusion
If you are a knowledgeable trucker, you already know the various benefits of driving 55 MPH compared to 60, 70, or even 80, so we are going to end the article without giving a lecture. What is important is that when you are driving from Point A to Point B, work to have time on your side rather than as an enemy to be defeated.
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