Crash tests reveal that modest speed increases can have deadly consequences, says AAA

Posted on January 28, 2021

Small speed increases can have huge effects on crash outcomes, as shown in new crash tests by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and Humanetics. The safety organizations conducted crashes at three different impact speeds (40, 50 and 56 mph). They found the slightly higher speeds were enough to increase the driver’s risk of severe injury or death.

Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that in Rhode Island, speed was a likely factor in 63 percent of fatal crashes in 2019, up from 45 percent of all traffic fatalities in 2017 and 2018. State DOT numbers show Providence and Cranston with the highest numbers of speeding crashes among Rhode Island communities.

Drivers often travel faster than posted speed limits, but when officials raise limits to match travel speeds, people still go faster. Today, 41 states allow 70 mph or higher speeds on some roadways, including eight states that have maximum speeds of 80 mph or more. A 2019 IIHS study found that rising speed limits have cost nearly 37,000 lives over 25 years. AAA and IIHS urge policymakers to factor in this danger from higher speeds when considering speed limit changes.

“We conducted these crash tests to assess the effect of speeds on drivers and learned that a small increase could make a big difference on the harm to a human body,” said Dr. David Yang, executive director of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. “A speeding driver may arrive at their destination a few minutes faster, but is the tradeoff of getting severely injured or even losing one’s life worth it if a crash occurs?”

“Higher speed limits cancel out the benefits of vehicle safety improvements like airbags and improved structural designs,” said Dr. David Harkey, IIHS president. “The faster a driver is going before a crash, the less likely it is that they’ll be able to get down to a survivable speed even if they have a chance to brake before impact.”

When correctly set and enforced, speed limits improve traffic flow and maximize all public road users’ safety.

“Cars are safer than they’ve ever been, but nobody’s figured out how to make them defy the laws of physics,” said Harkey of IIHS. “Rather than raising speed limits, states should vigorously enforce the limits they have.”

Speed limits should not be raised or lowered only to manipulate traffic volume on a particular roadway. States are urged to use engineering and traffic surveys when setting maximum speed limits.

“Policymakers need to also think beyond enforcement to control speeds and should consider infrastructure changes based on road type to calm traffic flow appropriately so that posted speed limits are followed,” said Lloyd Albert, AAA Northeast Senior Vice President of Public and Government Affairs.

This study is the second part of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety research examining the effect of posted speed limit changes on safety. In the Foundation’s first study, traffic engineers were asked how posted speed limits are set and what factors they consider in changing them.

Rhode Island
<< Back to Press Releases



Navigation

  • View All Press Releases
  • Archived Press Releases

By Date

  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019

By State

  • All States
  • Connecticut
  • Massachusetts
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • Rhode Island

By Topic

  • AAA Foundation (3)
  • AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety (3)
  • AAA Travel (1)
  • adas (2)
  • Agent of Honor (1)
  • automated vehicle (1)
  • automotive (45)
  • car doctor (3)
  • car maintenance (2)
  • car seats (1)
  • car tips (8)
  • child passenger safety (1)
  • child restraints (1)
  • Christmas (4)
  • cold weather (3)
  • connecticut (35)
  • CPS (1)
  • CPS week (1)
  • crashes (3)
  • daylight saving time (1)
  • deer (2)
  • deer collisions (2)
  • destination (1)
  • destination wedding (1)
  • diamond (5)
  • diamond hotels (1)
  • diamond program (5)
  • diamond rating (5)
  • diamond restaurants (1)
  • distracted (3)
  • distracted driving (4)
  • distracted driving law (1)
  • driving tips (6)
  • drowsy driving (1)
  • five diamond (5)
  • four diamond (5)
  • gas prices (100)
  • hands-free (1)
  • high tech (2)
  • holiday travel (13)
  • hotel (5)
  • hotels (5)
  • impaired driving (5)
  • law (1)
  • marijuana (3)
  • Massachusetts (51)
  • MassDOT (1)
  • memorial day (1)
  • move over (1)
  • new jersey (8)
  • new york (1)
  • preparation (2)
  • restaurant (4)
  • restuarants (5)
  • Rhode Island (46)
  • rv (1)
  • safe driving (2)
  • safety (14)
  • safety tips (12)
  • self driving car (1)
  • slow down move over (1)
  • storm (2)
  • storm prep (1)
  • summer (4)
  • summer driving (1)
  • summer travel (1)
  • technology (5)
  • teen driving (2)
  • thanksgiving (6)
  • travel (71)
  • travel agent (1)
  • Travel Marketplace (1)
  • triptik (3)
  • vacation (1)
  • weather (4)
  • winter (7)
  • winter driving (3)