West Virginia Governor’s Highway Safety Program announces speed limit enforcement effort
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CHARLESTON -- The West Virginia Governor's Highway Safety Program reminds drivers to obey the speed limit ahead of a high-visibility enforcement period to be conducted by law enforcement agencies statewide, starting today and continuing through Sept. 22.
In West Virginia in 2022, 27% of all crash fatalities were speed-related and 16% of all crash fatalities were motorcyclists, according to a press release from the Governor's Highway Safety Program.
"Speed limit signs are not suggestions; they are the law," said Jack McNeely, director of the program. "They are posted for the safety of the driver and others in that particular area. Unfortunately, law enforcement sees people speeding every day, especially young men. If you're killed in a crash, or if you kill someone else, that's it - there's no second chance. Speeding just isn't worth the risk."
Speeding reduces a driver's ability to steer safely around another vehicle, a hazardous object or an unexpected curve. Even the safest cars with the newest technologies are limited in how much they can help reduce the odds of a crash, the release said.
According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, local roads are more dangerous than highways for speeders. In 2022, 87% of all U.S. speeding-related traffic fatalities occurred on routes other than interstates.
"We are asking drivers to please slow down," McNeely said. "Our goal is to save lives, and we're putting all drivers on alert -- the posted speed limit is the law. No excuses."