Pantagraph.com | News | Blagojevich fends off truck speed limit hike

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

Patrick wrote on Oct 21, 2007 3:48 PM:

" The speed limit needs to be the same for all vehicles on all highways. This would in theory (if every one obeyed that speed limit within a mile or two per hour) minimize the number of on the road Interactions. With that I mean the number of Vehicles that would interact with any other vehicle on the road during any given period of time those vehicles were on the road. The greater the variance in speed among classes of vehicles the greater the number of interactions thus the greater the possibility of collisions. Seems like common sense to me but what do I know I'm not a politician. "

To "what a joke" wrote on Oct 12, 2007 11:24 AM:

" You must not get on the Interstate! "

What a joke. wrote on Oct 11, 2007 6:25 PM:

" If Larry Trent's traffic division of the ISP ever got up off of their lazy you know what and enforced the speed limit I would be surprised to say the least. The only people I see getting citations are car drivers, vans, and personal trucks. I have yet to see a CMV pulled over for speeding yet they fly by going way over the 55 mph limit. "

Halcyon Maxwell wrote on Oct 11, 2007 5:57 PM:

" How do we find out how our reps voted? guess i'll google it and see what the vote counts were. Think the PG could have done that legwork. "

Thanks "People" wrote on Oct 11, 2007 3:57 PM:

" I agree with you, I drive a truck, mostly I-74 from one end to another, then on into Iowa or Indiana, speed limit increases on both ends. Many of us drive about 57 or 8. Many feel they can get by with just under 65 and some over 65, I choose to follow the speed limits, mainly because I feel it is my obligation for safety. I will admit that I am concerned with the reprocussions of speeding, a ticket is expensive, too many and I get fired because company Insurance excludes drivers with too many tickets. Also if your are proven guilty of an illegal act Speeding, Talking on cell while driving or under the influence, you get ownership if you are in an accident, if someone dies you may forget what money looks like. Drivers have recieved fines for "Failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident," In court that translates to, "you caused the accident because you were driving too fast. " "

People... wrote on Oct 11, 2007 2:26 PM:

" You cannot say something lik "you can't raise the speed limit because people will go even higher thn that" it is not an argument. Using this logic I could argue that theft is illegal but people still steal - so why even bother having that law? If you are worried about people breaking the speed limit then actually enforce them. The issue is that many trucks actually do drive at 55mph and this causes all kinds of issues since traffic is not oging the same speed - I wouldn't be at all surprised if the death rate actually decreased if the limit remained the same. "

Adam wrote on Oct 11, 2007 2:22 PM:

" Forget saving lives. Do you realize the intertia a truck going 55 has, heck one going 35?! Theres so much power there its crazy. Let them run 85 like the rest of us. And for those crying about going too fast, get going or get out of the way, just because we arent all inept behind the wheel doesnt mean we should suffer. "

A Comment Poster wrote on Oct 11, 2007 2:14 PM:

" I'm glad that trucks will continue to have a 55 MPH speed limit, with cars having a 65 MPH speed limit. A difference between the speed limits that's not greater than a 10 MPH difference, does not seem to me to be an unreasonable difference, as long as it is the smaller vehicles, the cars, that can go up to 10 MPH faster than the big rigs. "

well there you go wrote on Oct 11, 2007 2:08 PM:

" I was initially against this...but since Blago is against it I have to switch my opinion. This guy is the most corrupt and inane politician of all time so anything he supports I will do the opposite...that way I am always right. "

Eastbound and down wrote on Oct 11, 2007 1:42 PM:

" We gonna do what they say can't be done. Yee-Ha!! "

enforce it wrote on Oct 11, 2007 1:37 PM:

" I can't believe the comments here, everyone say's make it 65 and they will drive 75. What has happened to law Enforcement, make it 65 and enforce it, FOR EVERYONE, cars included. We will save lives and fuel. Everyone wants to nit pick about what will happen, controll it, i guarentee that when the word gets out you can drive a truck 65 in Illinois but you will get a ticket for 70, the speeding will stop. Everyone is critical about truck drivers being so bad and speeding all the time, I can tell you those drivers will not keep their jobs long, trucking companies are required to check DMV records on their drivers, they will loose their business if they ignore it. It can be managed. "

to all wrote on Oct 11, 2007 1:31 PM:

" This is great. I drive 25 miles on I-55 every day. I set my cruise on 65 and would dare to say I am the slowest person on the road. If by some chance I do get the opportunity to pass someone, another car comes up from behind and hiss honk or flash their lights wanting me to speed up. I slow down at that point! Yo, Texas, ya'll are so confused down there you have different speed limits for day and night driving. I just wish there might be a little more police presence on the highways to deter speeding. Of course when the speeders see the police they slow down to 60 and then get in my way. "

In perspective wrote on Oct 11, 2007 1:30 PM:

" Trucks and truckers are getting a bad rap, they are not the only ones above the speed limit, they are just more noticable, they do not accelerate nor deccelerate near as fast as a pasenger vehicle so when an incident happens they get the blame whether they were at fault or not. Yes there are some terrrrrible truck drivers out there but there are as many or more in cars. The truth of this matter is in the artical, Blago twisted arms to get what he WANTED, You can not legally twist arms, those he twisted were scared or wanted something in exchange, the residents of Illinois get screwed while the Politicians get what they want, 55 mph is a great idea in Chicago and that is the limit of his concern, not the rest of the state. All the next governor has to do is sleep in the Gov's Mansion one night and he will do more for down state than Blogo has his entire term. "

Milorad wrote on Oct 11, 2007 12:22 PM:

" The posters on here are correct. Truckers rarely obey any traffic laws. I can tell you how many times they have almost run me off the road with their irresponsible driving tactics. Also, don't forget that a sizeable number of them are illegals who came from turd world countries. "

My Hero wrote on Oct 11, 2007 12:17 PM:

" Guv. Blodryervich strikes again. Its a good thing we have him in Springfield, I mean Chicago, looking out for all of us who actually use the highways rather than commute by air. "

also agree w/trucks? wrote on Oct 11, 2007 12:08 PM:

" I drive the interstates daily; at least 75% of the truckers go at least 65 now, if they upped the limit, can you imagine how fast they would be going (much more than 65). I lost count of the times I have almost been run off the road by a semi that is speeding, the driver is reading, talking on the phone or eating his/her dinner. And drivers of smaller vehicles are even worse; maybe they should lower their limit back to 55 and be done with it. But as stated in previous posts, the majority of the folks don't follow the limits to begin with (some fly by at 85-90); they know there are not enough police to patrol all of our interstates. "

Another Victory wrote on Oct 11, 2007 11:56 AM:

" Another stunning victory, won by blago bribing/forcing his will and way. What a state, what a man!!!! "

Agree with Trucks wrote on Oct 11, 2007 11:13 AM:

" I am not a liberal and I don't hate trucks...what I don't like is truckers that refuse to follow the speed limit and endanger other drivers. I can't tell you how many times I've been driving on Hwy 51 and have a had a truck recklessy fly by me, sometimes weaving back and forth. Oh...and did I mention I set my cruise on 70 so most likely these truckers are already driving 75-80. Raise it to 65 and then how fast will they go? The answer is to pull over all irresponsible drivers regardless of what they are driving. It's one thing to go 5 mph over the speed limit, but when in a big rig and you're driving 10-20 over you should be ticketed. "

Texas wrote on Oct 11, 2007 10:51 AM:

" Why don't we look at the speed limits in TX and see how many accidents they have had and compare. Who drives 65 mph anymore or 55 mph anymore? "

Trucks? wrote on Oct 11, 2007 9:41 AM:

" How does a liberal hate trucks? I drive a truck and you would call me a liberal? I don't need to drive 80. The speed limit is 55 MPH, and no one drives 55 mph. If you raise the speed limit to 65 mph...no one would drive 65. It's a proven fact that if my truck is going 75-80 mph it will take much longer to brake in the event of an accident. The fact is no one including yourself drives the speed limit. "

same speed wrote on Oct 11, 2007 9:25 AM:

" Why not have both cars and trucks go 60? Save some fuel. Not have as much darting in and out so fewer accidents. Just adds a little driving time for the cars. "

Liberals Hate Truckers and Trucks wrote on Oct 11, 2007 6:56 AM:

" they hate them because they represent fuel inefficiency, a substantial size difference, and most of all capitalism. After all it is the greedy corporations that ship their goods to greedy merchants who then sell them to needy people. The democrats want the government to be in charge of every aspect of our lives and that is why they hate trucks and truckers so much. They can not stand the thoughts of anyone being independent nor self supporting. "

Satan wrote on Oct 11, 2007 6:08 AM:

" I witnessed Blagojevich spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch burst into flames when she said,we’re talking about saving lives here. "

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