© Getty Images/ Protesting killer speed limits in 1937
In 1995 the US Congress removed federal regulation of speed limits, and in the years since, they have crept up across the country. In Texas, limits are now as high as 85 MPH; 41 states have 70 as the limit and 6 states have 80 MPH.
a 5 mph increase in the maximum speed limit was associated with an 8 percent increase in the fatality rate on interstates and freeways — the roads most directly affected by changes to the maximum speed limit — and a 3 percent increase on other roads. Just in 2017, the last year with data available, 1,934 of the 37,133 deaths would have been avoided had the speed limits were still at 1993 levels which maxed out at 65 MPH.
— source treehugger.com | Apr 8, 2019