Missouri to raise speed limits to 75 mph on some interstates

Missouri is planning to raise speed limits to 75 mph on four interstates near the Iowa and Arkansas borders by the end of the year, and truckers are being warned to increase stopping distances with faster-moving traffic. The move to increase speeds by 5 mph on rural interstate segments is the result of enactment in July of state legislation sponsored by state Sen. Jamie Burger. He introduced Senate Bill 1408 to increase some interstate speed limits to match those in neighboring states to reduce travel times and alleviate traffic bottlenecks. “I also feel the automated technology and safety features in modern vehicles combined with the improvements made to highways justify the slight increase,” Burger explained earlier this year. The new speed limits were announced Oct. 21 by the Missouri Department of Transportation. Unless posted otherwise, the current maximum speed limit on rural interstates and freeways in Missouri is 70 mph. Although the legislation took effect in August, MoDOT was tasked with determining which of the nine interstate corridors were eligible for higher speed limits and in which locations. Missouri has the nation’s seventh-largest state highway system with 33,814 centerline miles, according to the 2026 State Freight and Rail Plan. Each day, more than 1.5 million tons of freight moves along Missouri’s interstates, where vehicles of every type travel nearly 81 million miles. The 75 mph speed limits will apply to sections of four north-south interstates: I-29, I-35, I-49 and I-55. The latter two serve as backbones of the state’s freight network, according to MoDOT. 75 MPH Interstate Speed Limits Missouri…

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