NEWS RELEASE
COLORADO STATE PATROL
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Troopers often hear from the public that speed is not dangerous and that many drivers are capable of safely driving above the posted speed limits. Yet, these same motorists often aren't thinking beyond themselves and fail to connect their speed to aggression created on the roadways. Aggression makes everything more dangerous for all motorists and pedestrians in the area.
It’s the speeding driver who switches lanes quickly and passes on the right. It’s the speeding driver who accelerates towards a yellow light and sometimes makes it, but lots of the time, does not. It’s the speeding driver who tailgates and forces others into speeding when conditions are not safe. A speeding driver can affect the driving behaviors of entire packs of cars and create dangerous driving situations for everyone around them for miles to come and long after they are no longer in the area.
Troopers may be most likely to catch and ticket you for speeding, but our hope is that our contact will curb other aggressive driving behaviors as well.
The time saved by a driver exceeding the speed limit can be easily calculated on paper, but that calculation rarely translates to real life savings. A 15-mile commute in a 55 MPH zone will take you 16 minutes. If you drive ten miles over the speed limit, that same trip might be approximately two minutes shorter. However, none of our morning commutes take place in a vacuum of perfect space encompassing only one speed limit and no stop signs or stop lights. When using real life examples, rarely will speeding save you time.
Pay attention to the next driver who aggressively passes you and exceeds the speed limit. That driver is likely sitting with you at the next stop light, and the next one too. The math may show you a fraction earlier arrival time than those drivers obeying the posted speed limits, but the real life application rarely puts you ahead without recklessly running red lights, passing on shoulders and risking everyone’s safety. The bottom line is a heavy foot does not save you from punching in late at work.
The Colorado State Patrol cannot emphasize enough that speeding has been and will continue to be our biggest risk factor on the roadways, in part because it leads to other aggressive and dangerous driving behaviors. Plan ahead, leave two minutes earlier and enjoy the ride.
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