09/08/08 Rolling Back the Speed Limit

My husband and I just got back from a trip to Sacramento which entailed a 12 hour drive to and from. We were surprised at the number of cars there actually were on the road after hearing that most of the nation would choose to stay home over the holiday. Of course hearing that didn't stop us either! And we were even more surprised to see that the rising cost of gasoline hasn't deterred most of the driving population to slow down one iota! With speed limits still set at 70 across most of the U.S. drivers feel rest assured that that entitles them to go 80! We on the other hand were irritating drivers from Washington to California by going 65. And our obvious savings in miles per gallon had us laughing all the way to the pumps. At the risk of revealing my age, I remember when most states highway speed limit was 55; back when there was some serious thought about conserving gasoline. And while rolling back the speed limit to 55 again might be difficult for most drivers, it would sure make a lot of sense. Of course, most of us would compromise with 60 miles per hour!