Speeding was the second-leading cause of injury and fatal crashes in Colorado despite Colorado State Patrol troopers issuing more than 47,000 speeding tickets in 2024.
Troopers are currently taking a low-tolerance approach to top fatal crash factors, including lane violations and speeding, during its three-month Stop Speeding campaign.
“There is a portion of roadway users that when caught speeding, feel like they are being penalized for something that wasn’t causing anyone else a problem,” Col. Matthew C. Packard, chief of the Colorado State Patrol, said in a news release. “It feels like a victimless crime. A victimless crime would mean the behavior was consensual and didn’t harm others, yet the reality is that speeding is strongly associated with the worst crashes in rural and urban areas.”
Here are how speed limits are set on Fort Collins highways and roads
They are largely based on road design and amount of traffic.
The most widely accepted method by state and local agencies is to set the limit at or below the speed at which 85% of the traffic is moving, which studies have shown crash rates are lowest, according to the city of Fort Collins Traffic Operations website.
The city also factors into the equation the number of pedestrians, bicyclists and adjacent land uses before setting a speed limit.
Speed limits, like many laws, that arbitrarily restrict the majority of motorists encourages violations, lack public support and usually fail to bring about desirable changes in driving behavior, traffic operations states.
It is not high speeds alone that increase crash risk, but the variation of speed within the traffic flow. Drivers traveling significantly faster or slower than the speed limit are at greater risk of being involved in a crash.
Speeding is one factor why Fort Collins in 2023 saw its deadliest year on roads since 2017.
Common misconceptions of speed limits
According to the city of Fort Collins Traffic Operations, there are several misconceptions related to speed limits. Despite what you might think, the department says these are not true:
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Reducing the speed limit will slow the speed of traffic.
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Reducing speed limits will decrease the number of crashes and increase safety.
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Raising the posted speed limit will cause an increase in the speed of traffic.
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Any posted speed limit must be safer than an un-posted speed limit.
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Drivers will always go 5 mph over the posted speed limit.
What to know about Fort Collins’ new speeding corridors
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Drivers caught speeding 11 miles or more over the limit in these corridors will receive tickets and fines if a camera records their violation.
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Mobile units can also be placed at any location within any speed corridor to record violations and trigger a ticket, which will be sent by mail. Fort Collins Police Services, which already had four Jeep vehicles outfitted with camera radar systems, added two new transportable radar units as part of the speed corridor program.
Here are where Fort Collins’ speed corridors are located
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Intersection of Mulberry Street and Shields Street
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Intersection of Prospect Road and Shields Street
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Intersection of Harmony Road and Shields Street
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Intersection of Drake Road and Lemay Avenue
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Intersection of Drake Road and College Avenue (30-day warning period started Nov. 11)
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Intersection of Harmony Road and Timberline Road
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Suniga Road from College to Lemay avenues
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Riverside Drive from College Avenue to Pitkin Street
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Prospect Road from Taft Hill Road to Interstate 25
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Drake Road from Overland Trail to Miles House Avenue
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Horsetooth Road from College Avenue to Ziegler Road
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Harmony Road from Chokecherry Trail to Interstate 25
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Trilby Road from Wainwright Drive to College Avenue
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Taft Hill Road from Mulberry Street to Trilby Road
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Shields Street from Elizabeth Street to Bon Homme Richard Drive
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College Avenue from Carpenter Road to Laurel Street
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Lemay Avenue from Prospect Avenue to Trilby Road
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Timberline Road from Prospect Avenue to Trilby Road
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Ziegler Road from William Neal Parkway to Kechter Road
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Conifer Street from College to Lemay avenues
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Mulberry Street from Taft Hill Road to 12th Street
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Stuart Street from College to Lemay avenues
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Elizabeth Street from Overland Trail to Shields Street
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Overland Trail from Mulberry Street to Drake Road
Coloradoan reporter Rebecca Powell contributed to this story.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Misconceptions of how speed limits are set and how they work