CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Drivers will soon be able to travel faster on Interstate 485.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation confirmed Thursday it will begin implementing a 70 mph speed limit for the entirety of the 67-mile loop.
RELATED ARTICLE: 40 years after planning began, final leg of I-485 to open June 5
The speed limit is currently set at 65 mph.
"(Interstate) 485 is like a lifeline to me," James Callens, said. "I won't mind it."
"I drive that speed anyway," Kyle Rackliffe said.
NCDOT said it found drivers drove about 70 mph after conducting a speed study at 18 locations on I-485.
"We clocked the speed of 100 free-flowing vehicles," said Jordan-Ashley Walker, with NCDOT. "Meaning, if you have a line of cars that are traveling together, we looked at the speed of that very first vehicle. We found drivers were traveling at a speed of 70 to 75 mph. It creates a danger when you have people traveling at a lower speed and people traveling at a much higher speed."
Walker also said I-485 is designed for drivers to travel 70 mph. A determination she said was made based on several different factors including, site distance and the angle of the road.
"Site distance is how speed impacts how far ahead people can see," said Walker. "Also, if you have a road that has a sharp curve that's obviously going to impact the speed in which you can safely travel the road."
Channel 9 looked into the data and found there were more than 3,000 collisions on I-485 in 2014. Of those collisions, 161 were caused by speeding and 664 were due to the driver failing to reduce their speed.
Channel 9 reached out to North Carolina Highway Patrol to find out what it thought of the increase in speed limit. A spokesperson said it would be premature to speculate at this time.
Crews will begin updating the speed limit signs on May 26 and expect to have all 100 signs competed by May 29.
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