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posted by janrinok on Tuesday December 02 2014, @11:41AM   Printer-friendly
from the speeeeeed! dept.

AP reports that Montana lawmakers are drafting bills that would raise the daytime speed limit on Montana interstate highways from 75 to 80 and possibly as high as 85 mph. “I just think our roads are engineered well, and technology is such we can drive those roads safely,” says Art Wittich noting that Utah, Wyoming and Idaho have raised their speed limits above 75, and they haven't had any problems and drivers on German autobahns average about 84 mph. State Senator Scott Sales says he spent seven months working in the Bakken oil patch, driving back and forth to Bozeman regularly. “If I could drive 85 mph on the interstate, it would save an hour,” says Sales. “Eighty-five would be fine with me."

A few years ago Texas opened a 40 mile stretch on part of a toll road called the Pickle Parkway between Austin and San Antonio. The tolled bypass was supposed to help relieve the bottleneck around Austin but the highway was built so far to the east that practically nobody used it. In desperation, the state raised the toll road speed limit to 85 mph, the fastest in the nation. "The idea was that drivers could drop the top, drop the hammer, crank the music and fly right past Austin," says Wade Goodyn. "It's a beautiful, wide-open highway — but it's empty, and the builders are nearly bankrupt."

 
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  • (Score: 1) by zzw30 on Tuesday December 02 2014, @05:03PM

    by zzw30 (4576) on Tuesday December 02 2014, @05:03PM (#121917)

    Hi, Californian here.

    Try driving down 5 or across 80 before claiming that Californians would roll their car at 85mph. Flow of traffic on both of those is typically 80mph unless conditions warrant elsewise. Many of us also grew up with snow, in spite of the stereotype being that we're all beach bums from LA or San Diego.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 02 2014, @05:39PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 02 2014, @05:39PM (#121930)

    Many of us also grew up with snow, in spite of the stereotype being that we're all beach bums from LA or San Diego.

    Un-possible. Everyone in CA that wasnt a bum moved north at some point between 1980 and 2000. Those of you still there are bumbs, by definition.

    • (Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Tuesday December 02 2014, @08:22PM

      by Ethanol-fueled (2792) on Tuesday December 02 2014, @08:22PM (#121988) Homepage

      Californian here.

      Every Californian knows that the greatest local threat to motorists is Asian women behind the wheel. They tend to congregate in Orange county, Silicon Valley, and wherever A UC campus is located. They can often be spotted due to the pink "Pinay Pride" or "Exotic Princess" stickers on the backs of their Honda civics, driving 40 mph in the fast-lane and not signaling or even checking before doing fucking anything, as if they were the only drivers on the road.

      Being serious, as somebody who makes a lot of racial jokes, this is the only stereotype I have encountered that is infallibly true.