If Pennsylvania is on the way to passing a 65 mph speed limit on its pockmarked and potholed highways, can Maryland be far behind?
We certainly hope so. The parallels between the states straddling the Mason-Dixon Line are inescapable. The previous governors in both places steadfastly opposed raising the 55 mph limit. The new, more conservative governors took early stands supporting the change. The House of Representatives in Pennsylvania just approved a bill to increase the speed limit there, except for tractor-trailers, by a 154-46 margin. Meanwhile, several 65 mph bills are pending in Annapolis. Despite studies that show increases in speed, deaths, pollution and insurance costs due to higher speed limits, this change is freighted with powerful symbolism in a "smaller government" political climate.
Maryland and Pennsylvania are actually among the few stalwarts of the "Drive 55" era, ushered in during the gas crisis of the '70s. Only eight states remain with a 55 mph limit statewide.
One is Hawaii. But the other seven may hold a clue as to why they've retained the 55 mph limit. New Jersey, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maryland, New York, Delaware and Pennsylvania rank among the most densely populated states in the country. The highways in these states needn't get more adventurous. Even in the 40 more sparsely populated states that raised speed limits to 65 mph on their rural interstates in 1987-88, deaths increased by an average 24 percent by 1993.
Gov. Parris Glendening has offered the trade-off of a ban on radar detectors to sweeten his proposal for a higher speed limit on so-called rural interstates, some of which traverse busy suburban areas. Putting a stop to the inherent deceit of radar detectors would be fine, but that would not deter many more motorists from driving at 70 mph or above with a 65 mph speed limit. That has been the experience of other states that raised their speed limits, says the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
It's deliciously ironic that bureaucrats who upheld Gov. William Donald Schaefer's 55 mph rationale now argue that the 55 mph limit breeds disrespect for other traffic laws because it's often violated. We won't hold our breath waiting for their brethren over in the comptroller's office to make the same argument based on the fact that plenty of folks short the government on tax returns.
Supporters of this change view it in terms of individual freedom versus big government -- a case of "give me liberty or give me death." With 65 mph, you can't have one without the other.