KFDA - NewsChannel 10 / Amarillo News, Weather, SportsSpeed limit sign change official: Faster speeds coming

Speed limit sign change official: Faster speeds coming

AMARILLO, Texas----Motorists' traveling on two major roadways in our area will soon be able to accelerate a little faster thanks to the Texas Department of Transportation.

The new change doesn't come without concern.

Some worry increasing the speed limit on interstates will result in an increasing number of accidents.

Tx-DOT has been debating the issue for months and in a few short weeks, new speed limit signs will be posted along I-27 and I-40.

"Speed studies have been done and engineering studies have been done and the engineers that did these studies feel that a 75 mph speed limit is a safe speed limit for these roadways," Tx-DOT Spokesman Paul Braun said.

The speed limit east and west of the city on I-40 will soon be changed as well as parts of I-27 from Lubbock to Canyon.

More than 1,500 miles of highway across the state will be impacted.

State Troopers are taking a wait and see approach when it comes to these new speed limits.

"Anytime you see a crash with a higher velocity involved with it, the damage is going to be greater," said DPS Trooper Gabriel Medrano. "A lot of the crashes that we see around here a lot of them involve speed as a really high factor."

Tx-DOT says the new speed limit signs will be posted within a month and drivers should continue to follow the posted speed limit until signs are changed.

The 60 mph speed limit inside Amarillo city limits will remain the same.