Book Description

In response to a congressional request, GAO examined states' monitoring of motorists' compliance with the 55 miles-per-hour (mph) national speed limit. GAO reviewed six states' speed monitoring programs and found that: (1) the programs generally complied with monitoring requirements and regulations; (2) the states generally located their monitoring sites appropriately; (3) the Federal Highway Administration (FHwA) decreased its participation in the development and implementation of state monitoring programs; and (4) there was little relationship between states' speed limit enforcement activities and the compliance level. GAO also found that the: (1) states' speed monitoring programs did not meet the speed limit's objectives of improving highway safety; (2) states' enforcement activities were insufficient to ensure compliance with the speed limit; (3) federal criteria for judging states' compliance were inadequate because they failed to consider the differences in road quality and design; and (4) states' transportation officials believed that a comprehensive program should consider speed-related fatalities, enforcement levels, and road types in determining states' compliance.