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Lawmakers, governor gearing up for another fight over truck speed limits

Friday, September 28, 2007 11:54 PM CDT

Kurt Erickson

the southern springfield bureau

SPRINGFIELD -Supporters of allowing truckers to drive faster on Illinois highways are gearing up for another go-around with the governor.

When state lawmakers roll into Springfield next week, they will likely be asked to override Gov. Rod Blagojevich's veto of legislation that would raise the speed limit for large trucks to 65 miles per hour.

Under current law, Illinois is a rarity when it comes to speed limits for 18-wheelers and their heavy-duty counterparts. Now, trucks are limited to 55 mph, while cars are allowed to travel at the 65 mph limit.

Backers of the change say having semis and cars travel at the same speed as they do in most other states -will make highways safer.

But Blagojevich, as he did in 2004, vetoed the proposal, saying the higher limit will lead to more traffic deaths.

State Sen. John Sullivan, D-Rushville, who sponsored the speed increase legislation, said he hopes the House and Senate will override the veto.

That's not what happened in 2004 when the wheels came off a veto override proposal after the governor held a press conference decrying the increase. While the measure to override the governor's veto was approved in the Senate, 30 members of the House switched their previous votes and sided with the governor.

"I'm not sure what will happen this time," Sullivan said Friday.

Sullivan said he believes upping the speed limit "just makes sense."

"I think we're better off from a safety standpoint," Sullivan said.

On paper, it appears the override has support. When Senate Bill 540 was approved in the Senate this spring, it was on a 45-10 vote. The House supported it by a 90-22 margin.

But, on Friday, the governor tore a page out of his 2004 playbook.

Anticipating another push by legislators to override his veto, Blagojevich again announced his opposition to the higher speed limit.

"Over the last several years we have made tremendous strides in saving lives on Illinois' roadways. This effort to raise the speed limit for trucks to 65 miles per hour would mean we're making a U-turn and putting people's lives at risk," Blagojevich said.

Data provided by the Illinois Department of Transportation shows that 136 people died in truck-related fatalities in 2006, compared to 191 the previous year.

According to federal statistics, an average of about 177 people have been killed in truck-related accidents on Illinois roadways in each of the past 10 years.

Blagojevich Friday enlisted a number of traffic safety experts to voice their opposition to the override.

In a statement, Brad Roeber, president of AAA Chicago, said, "Illinois has made significant strides in improving roadway safety and overriding this veto and allowing trucks to travel at faster speeds would be a significant step backward."

Representatives of the trucking industry, who have been unsuccessful in several previous attempts to boost the speed limit, point to 40 other states with uniform speed limits for cars and trucks.

The current setup results in cars weaving in and out of traffic, potentially causing more wrecks, said Don Schaefer, executive director of the Mid-West Truckers association, a trucking trade organization.

kurt.erickson@lee.net / (217) 789-0865