One Interstate magnet for crashes
A section of Interstate 15 appears to be a magnet for serious crashes. State Police said there are several reasons for this and they include the temptation to text, talk on a cellphone and drive faster than the posted speed limit .
Back in July, the speed limit was raised to 80 mph on certain stretches of the interstate. In one of those stretches troopers have seen about four crashes in the month of September. In early September, six people were hospitalized after a crash near milepost 93. There have also been several rollovers. State Police said in one incident traffic was backed up on the exit ramp and motorists driving 80 mph or faster couldn’t stop in time, which caused multiple wrecks.
“What we are asking with this faster speed limit is that we take the three-second following rule and bump that up to four seconds and really give yourself time to see what is going on in front of you, pay attention to your surrounding environment and be able to take evasive action without being involved in a crash,” said Lt. Chris Weadick.
The Idaho Transportation Department said there were zero crashes that occurred in 2013 near milepost 93. Data for 2014 was not yet available. ISP said from July 24 – Aug. 20 troopers issued 60 more speeding tickets from the same time last year.
