Speed limit goes up on 20-mile stretch of Sterling Highway - Alaska Public Media

  • 📰 AKpublicnews
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 57 sec. here
  • 2 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 26%
  • Publisher: 55%

United States News News

United States Latest News,United States Headlines

The speed limit has increased from 55 to 65 mph on part of the Sterling Highway, near the turn to Skilak Lake Road.

It might take just a little less time to drive the Sterling Highway from one entrance of Skilak Lake Road to the other. That’s because the Alaska Department of Transportation changed the speed limit there from 55 to 65 miles per hour.The decision came after improvements to that stretch of highway in 2020, followed by a speed limit evaluation in the summers of 2021 and 2022, according to Justin Shelby, a spokesperson with transportation department.

“Based on the data gathered in that study, the recommendation was to increase the speed limit from 55 to 65 miles per hour,” he said. Shelby said, in general, a recommendation to increase the speed limit is often related to factors like visibility, the width and straightness of the road, and the amount of cross traffic that travels onto the road.about the change expressed concerns about excessive and reckless speeding in the area in the wake of the speed limit increase. Shelby said it actually may have the opposite effect.

“When there is a respected speed limit for most motorists, you actually improve safety by reducing the reckless and aggressive driving by others,” he said. “So by raising the speed limit, we’re actually looking to improve the safety of the road here.” The stretch of highway — between Mileposts 58 and 76 — runs through the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. Shelby did not comment on the impact to wildlife that a speed limit increase might have, though he did say the department always cautions drivers in Alaska, and particularly in the refuge, to be on the lookout for wildlife.

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.

Like anyone obeyed the old speed limit & we need more traffic deaths, Cool.

We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 387. in US

United States Latest News, United States Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

This wild event turns SF's Mission District into a racetrackOne wrong move, at speeds over 40 miles per hour, could spell disaster.
Source: SFGate - 🏆 534. / 51 Read more »

Alaska park managers preparing for loss of some of the state’s most iconic attractions: glaciers - Alaska Public MediaWarming temperatures are hastening the retreat of glaciers in Alaska. At national parks, managers are having to rethink their plans. How do they ensure the growing numbers of visitors do not disappear as the glaciers do? (via AlaskaBeacon)
Source: AKpublicnews - 🏆 387. / 55 Read more »

Mary Peltola visits friends, family and supporters in Bethel ahead of her historic swearing in - Alaska Public Media“I think she can really relate to coming from a small town and knowing the challenges that we all face out here,' said Bethany Kaiser, a paralegal from Bethel. She said she cried when she learned Mary Peltola won Alaska's special U.S. House race.
Source: AKpublicnews - 🏆 387. / 55 Read more »

How the polarizing effect of social media is speeding upFor many, checking social media has become a routine of logging on, seeing something that makes them angry or upset, and repeating that cycle ad infinitum. If that feels true to you, it's not your imagination.
Source: KPBSnews - 🏆 240. / 63 Read more »