Samenvatting
As of April 1987, states were permitted to raise the speed limit on rural interstates to 65 mph; 38 states elected to do so in 1987. Fatality data for the month when the new limit was in effect in 1987 were compared with fatalities in the same months of 1982-86 on rural interstates and other rural roads. Analyses indicate that fatalities on rural interstates in the states with increased speed limits in 1987 were conservatively estimated to be 15% higher than they would have been if the states had retained the 55 mph limit.