Thunder Road

Doing 80 on a long, straight highway through the flatlands was once considered almost a part of the American birthright. But when the oil embargo pinched the U.S. in 1973, high-speed, gas-gulping joyrides looked like something the nation could ill afford. Congress forced the states to impose a 55-m.p.h. limit, and a tradition died. Though lower speeds have saved countless lives and millions of barrels of oil, many road runners hate slow-motion driving. I Can't Drive Fifty-Five, a popular song by Sammy Ha-gar, has become the anthem of speeding scofflaws.

Now, with prices at the pump dipping below 700 per gal., the economic incentive for a 55-m.p.h. limit is fading. In the West, state governments are joining individual drivers in rebelling against Washington's go-slow edict. Arizona, South Dakota and Nebraska have reduced fines for exceeding the speed limit to as little as $10. Those states, as well as North Dakota, Minnesota and Nevada, have passed laws eliminating penalty points for some speeding infractions. California has discussed raising the speed limit to 65 m.p.h. on highways in less populated areas.

But the price is high for states that violate the speed limit. If more than 50% of a state's drivers exceed the 55-m.p.h. limit, the U.S. Department of Transportation can withhold up to 10% of that state's federal highway funds. The department monitors compliance electronically with subterranean sensors. For two years Arizona has not been in compliance, and stands to lose $5 million worth of highway funds so far; Vermont and Maryland have also failed to meet compliance standards, but are contesting federal methods for compiling speeding data.

Since outright repeal of the speed limit would mean a complete cutoff in federal highway grants, not even the most rebellious states have ever gone through with it. Nevada has come closest, with a new law that couples mandatory seat belts with a 70-m.p.h. speed limit that would take effect on July 1. But Robin Hollibird, a spokeswoman for the Nevada transportation department, believes the law will be over turned in short order. Nevadans, she says, just want to show Washington what they think of the 55-m.p.h. limit.