BEREA, Ohio -- The speed limit on the Ohio Turnpike for buses and trucks jumped to 65 miles per hour last week.
The Ohio Turnpike Commission unanimously adopted a resolution late last month increasing the speed limit for commercial vehicles from 55 miles per hour. The change went into effect Sept. 8.
The speed limit for autos remains unchanged at 65 mph.
Ohio Gov. Bob Taft had proposed higher turnpike speeds and lower tolls for commercial vehicles, especially over-the-road trucks, in an attempt to lure them off overloaded two-lane roads and onto the turnpike.
About two-thirds of the Ohio Turnpike has three lanes in each direction.
Truck and motorcoach traffic began spilling over to smaller roads running parallel to the turnpike after an 82 percent toll increase took full effect in 1999. Some of the side roads have become dangerously congested, including Ohio 2 between Lorain and Toledo, and U.S. 422 in Geauga County.
The Ohio Department of Transportation projects the change in speed limit will increase turnpike truck traffic by 21 percent. The state patrol was opposed to the higher bus and truck speed limit but did not ask the commission to reject the proposal.
Ohio DOT Director Gordon Proctor, a turnpike board member, said he expects the change to improve overall road safety throughout northern Ohio. Some of the two-lane roads now used heavily by trucks have fatality rates more than 10 times higher than the turnpike, Proctor said.
Both ODOT and the turnpike promised to closely monitor traffic counts and accident data for at least a year. Officials also plan increased weight enforcement on routes that run close to the turnpike.
Turnpike Chairman Thomas Noe said that after a year he would consider raising the speed limit for cars to 70 mph.
The commission approved another change aimed at luring commercial vehicles. The turnpike will cut its share of the revenue from the sale of diesel fuel at turnpike gas stations, so they can offer diesel up to 11 cents a gallon cheaper than nearby stations. A motorcoach with a near-empty tank might save upwards of $20-$25 during a fill-up.
The turnpike also is considering ways to reduce tolls for commercial vehicles to further entice trucks and buses. A 20 percent toll reduction, combined with the higher speed limit, could boost turnpike commercial vehicle traffic by 38 percent, ODOT projects.