Speed limit officially increased on I-555

Arkansas – If you’ve driven on I-555 lately, you may have noticed the new, increased speed limit signs.

Speed limits on interstates and some state highways have increased from 70 to 75 mph where it was recommended by the Arkansas Department of Transportation.

Arkansas legislators directed ARDOT to increase the speed limits for highways and interstates during the 2019 legislative session.

District 10 Engineer for ARDOT Brad Smithee said there was a lot of research done, finding the appropriate speed increase and also where to put those increases in place.

“We wanted to be very careful to look and determine the best places we could recommend those changes, and so we had to go through that very systematically,” said Smithee. “We had to look at designs from long ago from all these roads, where they actually designed for those speeds, are they configured to where they can handle those speeds, and make our best recommendations.”

There are still some areas that will not see a higher speed limit.

That includes the area near Marked Tree that reduces to 65 miles per hour for farm equipment, as well as busier parts of the interstate in Jonesboro.

Smithee said it’s important for drivers to be aware that increased speeds do mean increased reaction time, urging drivers to be cautious as always.