Apr 7, 2011, 3:21pm ET

Texas House approves 85 mph speed limit, fastest in the U.S.

Legislators in the Texas House have approved a measure to up the speed limit to 85 in some areas of the state, with the Senate now left considering a similar measure.

With the UK considering an 80 mph speed limit on its motorways, the great state of Texas is poised to one-up the Brits (and most of the world) with an 85 mph limit on some interstates .



As it stands now, most highways in Texas are limited to 70 miles per hour, with about 520 miles limited to 80 mph.



House members in the Texas legislator have approved a measure to authorize the Texas Department of Transportation to begin the process of raising speed limits to 85 mph. The Senate must still approve the plan, but observes say passage of the bill is likely.



"They have high-speed roadways in Europe, and there could be some merit in having some of those highways in Texas," said Rep. Lois Kolkhorst of Brenham, who introduced the bill. "Given the right engineering, we should consider it."



Legislators like Kolkhorst believe there are roads in Texas that are engineered well enough to safely allow for even higher speeds. For example, Rep. Joe Pickett, El Paso, said of a section of the 10 highway that it "is as nice a road as you can build; it's flat with a long line of sight, wide lanes and good shoulders.



Critics to the proposed changes include automotive insurance companies, like Jerry Johns, a representative for Southwestern Insurance Information Service. Johns argues that the change will make the roads unsafe. "Obviously, the two things that kill most people on our highways are speed and alcohol. Increasing it to 85, or even 75, will have a dramatic impact on the death and injury rate on those highways where it's implemented."



Johns was so adamant about his claims that higher limits automatically leads to more injuries and deaths, he added, "but 85 mph is simply too fast to drive even on a flat road. Any little hitch can cause an accident at that speed. There is still traffic on those roads, and to drive 85 mph is simply ludicrous."



Johns has apparently never heard of the autobahns, the famous freeway network in Germany with no speed limits on significant stretches and an impressive safety record.



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