After 20 years, cars and trucks will no longer have to drive at different speeds on Arkansas highways. This week, Arkansas Department of Transportation will be taking down split speed signs, and replacing them with 70 mph limit signs for all.
The differing speeds for cars and trucks was an idea that was suppose to aid the flow of traffic, but years of research proved that it had no effect on the outcome of traffic flow.
The director of Arkansas’ Highway Department, Scott Bennett, says that he experienced the congestion caused by the split limits first hand. He described his experience to commission members:
“There was a couple of times that I was in the left lane behind a truck that was going about 65.1 mph and trying to pass a truck in the right lane going 65.0 mph. It took me about somewhere around 17 minutes to get around one of those trucks. It took me about 15 minutes to get around the other one. It is actually causing congestion out in the rural areas, especially I-40 between here and West Memphis.”
The increased speed limits will affect Interstate 40, Interstate 55, and Interstate 30.
