"Missing" speed limits

[doorknob60]

With their recent speed limit raises, Oregon should still be missing 60. Someone from that region could confirm.

For the past while (feels like it's been 10 years or so, but I could be way off), Oregon has had 60 zones on I-5 through Salem and Eugene (previously 55 I'm pretty sure). Other than those two places, I can think of any others in the state, as any state highway (except those changed legislatively recently, where were all to 65 or 70, not 60) max out at 55. So prior to that, I'm pretty sure there were no 60 zones.

[corco]

Imports for the US market often use the same scale for 3rd world units they'd use for SI units elsewhere (hence speedometers that exceed mechanical capabilities of the vehicle by somewhere between NASCAR and Indy car margins), then afterthought the fact the US still has to deal with real units with smaller digits inside.

That's not accurate at all. Get in a Japanese market Toyota, for instance, and you'll find a speedometer that goes up to 240 or 260 km/h, where the speedometer in a new US market Corolla only goes up to 140. Speedometers since the repeal of the 85 MPH mandate are usually designed to have a normalish freeway driving speed somewhere in the middle - in the US that is somewhere between 60 and 70 and in the rest of the world it is somewhere between 100-120.

I can't name a single car that is sold with the same gauge cluster in US and metric markets. Even the newest Corvette - sold in the US with a 200 MPH speedometer, is sold in Europe with a 320 km/h speedometer. Please name one, if this is accurate.

[RobbieL2415]

60 in CT, RI, VT, NH, ME, and NY. (MA has a 60 section.)
70 in ME.

Does Connecticut even have 50?  I distinctly remember US 7 off the freeway not even having 45, but I am sure that US 1 east of East Haven someplace gets higher than that.

There's 50 MPH zones on:

US 6, US 44, CT 2, CT 4, CT 8, CT 20 and CT 354

Just to name a few.

[jbnv]

I'm not really sure I understand this thread. Do you mean that you find it odd that states "skip" over numbers? Because I actually find it odd that states waste their time running through a whole scale of 5's when I see people vary more than 5mph just trying to maintain the same speed. I think 40, 50 and 60mph speed limits are pointless. It should just be 35, 45, 55, 65, etc - just like how your speedometer is labeled. No need for anything in between, just like how the metric world only uses the "aughts" with no 5's in-between.

Wow, do you think all cars have the 5s labeled on the speedometer but not the 0s?  I'm not sure I've ever owned a car like that.

Someone learned to drive in the 1980s or earlier.

[machias]

I'm not really sure I understand this thread. Do you mean that you find it odd that states "skip" over numbers? Because I actually find it odd that states waste their time running through a whole scale of 5's when I see people vary more than 5mph just trying to maintain the same speed. I think 40, 50 and 60mph speed limits are pointless. It should just be 35, 45, 55, 65, etc - just like how your speedometer is labeled. No need for anything in between, just like how the metric world only uses the "aughts" with no 5's in-between.

Wow, do you think all cars have the 5s labeled on the speedometer but not the 0s?  I'm not sure I've ever owned a car like that.

Someone learned to drive in the 1980s or earlier.

Vehicles manufactured from 1979 to the mid 1980s had speedometers that highlighted the number 55 and could show no more than 85 MPH.

[kkt]

What?  The difference is kilometers that the entire world except one country uses, and miles that the United States uses.  I'm not sure either could be described as having their shit together.

UK uses miles and speed limitd are in MPH.

Okay, thanks.  Know if the UK has any plans to change?

[jeffandnicole]

... I think 40, 50 and 60mph speed limits are pointless. It should just be 35, 45, 55, 65, etc - just like how your speedometer is labeled. No need for anything in between, just like how the metric world only uses the "aughts" with no 5's in-between.

I will be amazed if you were never in a car without a speedometer ending in 0'x.  Even thru the horrible NMSL years of the 70's and 80's cars still were made with x0 speedometers.

The GSP had 60 from Toms River to the NY Thruway pre NMSL and it was only 65 from Toms River to Cape May.  I have no idea if originally the section where the three intersections were was 65 at the time or not.

The NJ Turnpike according to my dad was only 65 south of Bordentown, but I distinctly remember as a kid being all 60 as the old VMS speed limit sign was a red neon 60 digit with a green back lit SPEED LIMIT sign above it.

I-78, I think was 60 and the part from I-287 to Drift Road in Watchung was only short lived at that as that section opened just a short time before the NMSL was placed in effect.

I think the NJ Turnpike was 60 for its entire length, at least according to one book I read.  I think I recall reading the ACX was 70, but never actually seen proof of that.

[kphoger]

A furlong is 1/8 of a mile.  Here in the US we give distances down the 1/4, but this just goes one step further in accuracy.

[jeffandnicole]

A furlong is 1/8 of a mile.  Here in the US we give distances down the 1/4, but this just goes one step further in accuracy.

Generally speaking.  There are exceptions though.  https://goo.gl/maps/iDZhaoZqTm72

[kphoger]

A furlong is 1/8 of a mile.  Here in the US we give distances down the 1/4, but this just goes one step further in accuracy.

Generally speaking.  There are exceptions though.  https://goo.gl/maps/iDZhaoZqTm72

Now that's craziness...

[jeffandnicole]

A furlong is 1/8 of a mile.  Here in the US we give distances down the 1/4, but this just goes one step further in accuracy.

Generally speaking.  There are exceptions though.  https://goo.gl/maps/iDZhaoZqTm72

Now that's craziness...

Here's a thread from last year with some other examples: https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=14690.0

[SidS1045]

Know if the UK has any plans to change?

It was very unlikely before Brexit.  Now, I'd say somewhere between slim and none.

[1995hoo]

A furlong is 1/8 of a mile.  Here in the US we give distances down the 1/4, but this just goes one step further in accuracy.

Generally speaking.  There are exceptions though.  https://goo.gl/maps/iDZhaoZqTm72

There used to be a sign on westbound I-66 advising that Exit 64 was 1/10 of a mile ahead. It's been replaced. It was attached to the Virginia Lane overpass and originally said 1/4 mile, but that was obviously incorrect and it was changed to 1/10 until new signs went up in 2012 as part of the I-495 HO/T lane project.

[slorydn1]

I'm not really sure I understand this thread. Do you mean that you find it odd that states "skip" over numbers? Because I actually find it odd that states waste their time running through a whole scale of 5's when I see people vary more than 5mph just trying to maintain the same speed. I think 40, 50 and 60mph speed limits are pointless. It should just be 35, 45, 55, 65, etc - just like how your speedometer is labeled. No need for anything in between, just like how the metric world only uses the "aughts" with no 5's in-between.

Wow, do you think all cars have the 5s labeled on the speedometer but not the 0s?  I'm not sure I've ever owned a car like that.

In the 80's every car my family owned had the 5's labeled instead of the 0's. I haven't seen a speedo with 5's on it since then, though.

Heck, my Mustang's are labeled in 20 mph segments. It's a real pita to find and maintain 25 or 35 mph without glancing at my gps to get my speed reading.

Back to the topic-I almost messed up and posted 40mph as a missing number here in NC and then got reminded that US-70 down in Havelock is posted at 40. That said, it seems to be very rare here.

[20160805]

I've lived in Wisconsin my whole life, and I haven't seen a 60 mph speed limit either, with the exception of advisory speeds on highway exit ramps.

[PHLBOS]

Speedometers since the repeal of the 85 MPH mandate are usually designed to have a normalish freeway driving speed somewhere in the middle - in the US that is somewhere between 60 and 70 and in the rest of the world it is somewhere between 100-120.

I can't name a single car that is sold with the same gauge cluster in US and metric markets. Even the newest Corvette - sold in the US with a 200 MPH speedometer, is sold in Europe with a 320 km/h speedometer. Please name one, if this is accurate.

Using your listed Corvette example 200 mph x 1.6 km/miles = 320 km/h; so while the displays are indeed different, the actual calibrations are not.

Such wasn't the case during the bad ol' 0-85 days.  A US marketed vehicle had 0-85 (140 km/h) but its Canadian & Mexican counterparts had 0-180 or 190 (110 mph or 120 mph) speedometers.

Most of today's cars (US market), the speedometers have since gone the other extreme and are now calibrated up to 160 mph (most states in the US do not have a posted 80-85 mph speed limit).

I'm not really sure I understand this thread. Do you mean that you find it odd that states "skip" over numbers? Because I actually find it odd that states waste their time running through a whole scale of 5's when I see people vary more than 5mph just trying to maintain the same speed. I think 40, 50 and 60mph speed limits are pointless. It should just be 35, 45, 55, 65, etc - just like how your speedometer is labeled. No need for anything in between, just like how the metric world only uses the "aughts" with no 5's in-between.

Wow, do you think all cars have the 5s labeled on the speedometer but not the 0s?  I'm not sure I've ever owned a car like that.

Someone learned to drive in the 1980s or earlier.

Vehicles manufactured from 1979 to the mid 1980s had speedometers that highlighted the number 55 and could show no more than 85 MPH.

Slight correction to the above: in the US market, just about every vehicle (domestic & imported) from the 1980 model year to about the late 80s had the 5s labeled with the 55 highlighted in either a bolder text, different color (usually red) or boxed (many Fords used what I refer to as TV 55).

0-85 mph speedometers first appeared on GM & Ford vehicles for the 1977 model year (although some early-production models still had the older 0-100 or 0-120 clusters); but such still had the 0s marked (with 85 either marked or left blank) through the 1979 model year.  Chrysler, AMC (they were still around then) & the imports (likely forceably) switched to 0-85 for the 1980 model year (with the 5s marked).

[Pink Jazz]

Sorry to bump, but just to mention, New Mexico no longer has any 70 mph zones on its Interstates as far as I know; the only two Interstate sections that were 70 mph (I-25 from Tramway to US 550, and I-10 from Las Cruces to the Texas line) are now 75 mph.  70 mph speed limits are now only found on some rural arterials.

[lordsutch]

I've never seen 60 in Georgia, outside of construction zones on normally-70-mph Interstates. I also can't recall any 50s off the top of my head; if they exist, they seem to be extremely rare.

A couple of other recent 60 mph sightings in Georgia (in addition to I-75 in Macon as I mentioned earlier): GA 49 between Fort Valley and Byron, and GA 96 in Reynolds - both are Fall Line "Freeway" segments, but are 4-lane expressways.

I haven't seen this on any of the other GRIP corridors, although GDOT does seem to be in he midst of a gradual bumping of limits upward or expanding 65 & 70 zones so maybe we'll see some more 60 zones too, particularly on older 4-lane sections built to lower standards (like US 41 south of Griffin and GA 300) that are posted at 55 now like the GA 49 FLF section.

There's also a new 50 section on US 129/GA 247 in Warner Robins, which used to be posted at 45, and much of Moody Road between Warner Robins & Perry is now posted at 50 too. Wouldn't surprise me if the Sardis Church extension in south Bibb also gets posted at 50 (or even 55) a few months after it opens, despite the plans showing 45 mph signs. I've also seen it posted on some county roads in Twiggs. So 50 is becoming relatively common, at least in middle Georgia.

[renegade]

I'm not really sure I understand this thread. Do you mean that you find it odd that states "skip" over numbers? Because I actually find it odd that states waste their time running through a whole scale of 5's when I see people vary more than 5mph just trying to maintain the same speed. I think 40, 50 and 60mph speed limits are pointless. It should just be 35, 45, 55, 65, etc - just like how your speedometer is labeled. No need for anything in between, just like how the metric world only uses the "aughts" with no 5's in-between.

Wow, do you think all cars have the 5s labeled on the speedometer but not the 0s?  I'm not sure I've ever owned a car like that.

You did if you had a car or truck built in the early-to-mid '80s.

[jeffandnicole]

I'm not really sure I understand this thread. Do you mean that you find it odd that states "skip" over numbers? Because I actually find it odd that states waste their time running through a whole scale of 5's when I see people vary more than 5mph just trying to maintain the same speed. I think 40, 50 and 60mph speed limits are pointless. It should just be 35, 45, 55, 65, etc - just like how your speedometer is labeled. No need for anything in between, just like how the metric world only uses the "aughts" with no 5's in-between.

Wow, do you think all cars have the 5s labeled on the speedometer but not the 0s?  I'm not sure I've ever owned a car like that.

You did if you had a car or truck built in the early-to-mid '80s.

Even then, not all of them did. The Toyota Camry used the 0's, for example.

[kphoger]

I'm not really sure I understand this thread. Do you mean that you find it odd that states "skip" over numbers? Because I actually find it odd that states waste their time running through a whole scale of 5's when I see people vary more than 5mph just trying to maintain the same speed. I think 40, 50 and 60mph speed limits are pointless. It should just be 35, 45, 55, 65, etc - just like how your speedometer is labeled. No need for anything in between, just like how the metric world only uses the "aughts" with no 5's in-between.

Wow, do you think all cars have the 5s labeled on the speedometer but not the 0s?  I'm not sure I've ever owned a car like that.

You did if you had a car or truck built in the early-to-mid '80s.

Even then, not all of them did. The Toyota Camry used the 0's, for example.

My family used to own an '85 Corolla, and I used to own an '87 Corolla, and I can confirm that both of them had the 0s and not the 5s.

[Roadgeekteen]

I don't see much 45 in MA. 60, of course is only on MA 3.

[michravera]

Just some notables in California...

45 - US 101/Golden Gate Bridge
50 - US 101 in San Francisco from I-280 to I-80
55 - Very common across California
60 - CA-58 on 2-lane segment in Hinkley (soon to replaced)
65 - Typical on urban freeways and rural expressways.
70 - Typical on rural freeways.

45 is almost the default for urban expressways
50 is used on the expressway portion of CASR-17

Most turns advised below 15MPH are just posted "Slow"

[Pink Jazz]

Looks like Arizona might now have its first 60 mph zone in many years. ADOT recently changed the speed limit on SR 238 to 60 mph. I wonder if there are other 60 mph zones in Arizona that I am unaware of.

[Eth]

I can't speak for Hawaii's other islands, but in my travels on Oahu last week, while 25 and 35 mph limits were plentiful, I don't think I ever saw any 30s or 40s. 45 seemed to be as high as it got on non-freeways (and then only in rural areas). 50 and 60, in addition to 55, could be found on the Interstates; I don't think I ever saw anything over 60 (I didn't drive any of H-3, so I can't rule out higher limits there).