Nt1310 Unit 1 Assignment 1

GOVERNMENT 1

Federal Highway Policy

GOVERNMENT 2 The policy I have chosen to focus on is the Federal Speed Limit. This is a policy that involves national, state and local involvement and I will try to show how each plays a part in this issue. The history of the speed limit goes back decades. The oil embargo in 1973 made it necessary for the Federal government to get involved. They decided that imposing a speed limit would limit fuel usage and save oil since it would be limited. Once the crisis passed, the states were allowed to set the limits for their states. Another thought process was that slowing the speed nationally would reduce the number of accidents and provide for safer travel among travelers. The policy raises the issue of federalism because a state should be able to
regulate it’s speed based on the territory and population of that state. The speed limit in Montana which has a lot of open roads and highways is going to be different than the congestion in the Northeast, in states such as New York and Massachusetts. The framers didn’t mention this in the Constitution because car travel wasn’t even a thought at that time. No one could have forseen this issue arising. The Pro in this debate is that having a federal speed limit would limit the number of accidents each year, if enforced properly. If everyone was doing the speed limit that is posted, we could reduce the number of accidents. The Con is that no one does the speed limit that is posted, the majority of people go five to ten miles over the speed
GOVERNMENT 3 limit. Lowering the speed limit actually causes more people to speed. People are running late and decide to make up the difference in their cars. You see them running in and out of lanes and not practicing defensive driving. That is a good cause of an accident. Another Pro is having a speed limit helps save the environment. The higher the speed limit, the more fuel is needed to run the cars and the more fuel is being used up. Less fumes are being released into the air. We could save more resources with a reduced speed limit. The Con would be a speed limit should be set according to the area that is in question.
As I stated before, the states will argue that no one knows their terrority better than them. My opinion on whether the speed limit is effective is no. The reason I don’t feel it is effective is because people will always speed no matter what we set the speed limit at. There are areas in the country where the speed limit is seventy miles an hour. I have been on these highways and while I’m doing the speed limit, I have been passed by numerous vehicles. Now if the speed limit on that same road was eighty or ninety miles an hour and I was doing that limit, I can promise you there would be cars still going by me. The thought in this country is that “Oh, the cops will give you five miles over the limit”. That thought process needs to be changed. I do believe the policy is consistent with federalism. I have no problem with the federal government giving power to the states to set
GOVERNMENT
4 the speed limits for their territory. The federal government in a crisis should step in, like they did with the oil embargo that threatened to stop movement in this country during the 1970’s. However, it’s a local matter because the local government in that area knows better than any one else what the problems are in their district and they should be allowed to set the bar as to what speed limits they want.

GOVERNMENT 5
REFERENCES
Elvik, R. (2012). Speed Limits, Enforcement, and Health Consequences. Annual Review Of Public Health, 33(1), 225-238. doi:10.1146/annurev-publhealth-031811-124634

http://ezinearticles.com/?Federal-Speed-Limit&id=2767772

http://www.nytimes.com/1995/11/19/us/ending-of-federal-speed-limit-wins-congressional-approval.html

http://www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/speedlimit_laws.html