The Florida House of Representatives recently passed Senate Bill 1220, which would increase the speed limit on the state’s highways. The decision was met with negative reactions from Florida residents, as many were enraged that this new regulation could put their safety at risk on the road.
Florida Senate Bill 1220 would allow highway speed limits in Florida to increase to 80 miles per hour. The previous limit on the state’s major highways, such as Interstate 95, was 70 mph.
In addition to raising highway speed limits, the bill includes several other changes. It would eliminate the requirement for license plate validation stickers, require registration renewals to be recorded electronically, allow the use of automated license plate recognition systems on private property, and modify some aspects of vehicle noise regulations.
The bill was strongly supported by legislators, passing with an 87-23 vote, but it still needs approval from the Senate due to an amendment before it can finally become law.
Floridians Think This Could Be a Dangerous Change
Most Florida residents on social media were not happy with the change: “I’m opposed to it. Way too many people have already shown that they don’t have the driving skills to handle vehicles at higher speeds.”
One driver who often travels between cities said, “I drive on 95 for 12 miles every day. There are at a minimum 2x accidents per week in that small distance. Faster speed limits are only going to make this worse.”
Some folks were concerned about how this would affect the state, given what many say about its drivers: “I feel like Florida has among the worst drivers in the nation.” Others were enraged that legislators did not seem concerned about the safety of locals: “They seem more worried about people driving too slow than too fast,” while some bashed this decision, saying, “When your main demographic is ‘people who hate following rules.'”
There were also concerns that this could make people drive even faster: “So, 90mph,” asked one social media user, to which another responded: “Right? Everyone is already going 80.”
Not everyone agreed that the speed limit should stay the same, though. “To put this in context, the 70 mph limit was introduced in 1961. Cars are a bit safer now,” one Floridian said. Others responded: “But the drivers aren’t”; “If anything, they’re probably worse.” In the end, one concerned resident had a few words to say about it: “Good luck, everyone.”
