State Speed Zoning Standards

Speed Limits

This is a list of links to state Department of Transportation pages explaining their speed zoning policies. Some of them are written for public consumption (17 states), others for engineers (9 states). The ITE has developed a "majority rule" pamphlet like the one used by Arizona, Kansas, and Missouri.

Many states have rational guidelines for setting speed limits. However, these guidelines are seldom followed, because of political and revenue generating objectives. The police officers in each state are not responsible for setting these policies, but they are obligated and pressured to enforce them.

State	Document
ITE	Speed Zoning Information - A Case of "Majority Rule" (proposed standard)
Alaska	Speed Zoning Policy and Procedure
Arizona	Establishing Speed Limits - A Case of "Majority Rule"
California	MUTCD 2003 California Supplement Page 2B-51
Colorado	Establishing Realistic Speed Limits
Connecticut	State Traffic Commission Speed Limit Information
Kansas	Establishing Speed Limits
Louisiana	LaDOTD FAQ - Speed Limits
Maine	Speed Limits - How Are They Set?
Maryland	Speed Limits
Massachusetts	Procedures For Speed Zoning On State And Municipal Roadways (unofficial site)
Michigan	Establishing Realistic Speed Limits
Minnesota	Speed Limit? Here's Your Answer
Ohio	Procedures for Speed Zones
Texas	Procedures for Establishing Speed Zones
Virginia	VDOT Travel Center FAQ - Speed Limits
Washington	WSDOT Traffic Services - Speed Limits
West Virginia	WV DOT - Speed Limits

Search Speed Limits

The NMA's Position

Speed limits should be based on sound traffic-engineering principles that consider responsible motorists' actual travel speeds. Typically, this should result in speed limits set at the 85th percentile speed of free-flowing traffic (the speed under which 85 percent of traffic is traveling). These limits should be periodically adjusted to reflect changes in actual traffic speeds.