Orlando, Fla. — The Central Florida Expressway Authority will consider raising the speed limit on State Road 408 during a meeting on Thursday.
A survey conducted by the agency studied the effects of increasing the speed limit to 60 miles an hour on the toll road, from Kirkman Road to Chickasaw Trail.
The 12-mile section of highway in Orange County has a posted speed limit of 55 miles an hour.
However, most drivers go much faster.
“When you have 15% of motorists traveling the speed limit, and have 85% going in excess of that, you have a situation where faster motorists are weaving in and out, or ‘lane surfing,’ and it really poses a dangerous situation,” says Brian Hutchings, spokesman for the Central Florida Expressway Authority (CFX).
CFX surveyors found the majority of drivers were traveling between 66 and 78 miles an hour in that area.
They also saw a rise in serious, high-speed crashes.
Florida Highway Patrol Lieutenant Kim Montes tells WDBO she travels S.R. 408 every day and has witnessed “lane surfing” by speeding drivers.
“I think everyone has seen this, where they shift lanes to get ahead of the car that’s in front of them,” Montes says.
By increasing the speed limit from 55 to 60, the expressway authority hopes to reduce the difference in speed between cars on the highway.
A 2019 Iowa study found that when a speed limit was increased, drivers tended to adhere to the new speed limit.
“We firmly believe that it will improve safety on our road, which is our primary motivation behind it,” Hutchings said.
CFX will decide at a meeting on Thursday morning whether to increase the highway’s speed limit.
If they do, it will take 3-4 months to update signage along the road.
The speed limit will not change on S.R. 408 near the Interstate 4 interchange (Tampa Avenue to Summerlin Avenue) until construction is completed.
Cox Media Group
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