A proposal to create two speed limits by slowing trucks to 55 mph on New Jersey highways could stay in neutral due to opposition from the Automobile Association of America.

Transportation Commissioner Jack Lettiere said Jan. 13 New Jersey was "not a candidate" for such a move, which would create two speed limits on more than 400 miles of 65 mph road, according to North New Jersey News.

Even so, Lettiere said he would continue discussing that option. The AAA is against two speed limits, but the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety thinks it's a good idea.

In addition, New Jersey Assemblywoman Connie Myers from Hunterdon County has introduced a bill (A3127) to split speed limits for cars and trucks in the Garden State.

Although he thinks the proposal could lead to more accidents, Lettiere said it would be discussed by Department of Transportation engineers, constituent groups, safety advocates and "people who know things."

The proposal for dual speed limits came after a horrific day in November when three separate accidents on Interstates 80, 287 and 78  - all involving trucks – killed three people, injured six and delayed thousands of commuters. State officials said none of the accidents were caused by truckdrivers.

 The AAA study

Meanwhile, an AAA study last July showed car drivers are largely at fault for accidents involving large trucks. The study cited data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System for 1995-1998.

During that period, 12,554 people died in car-truck crashes – 70.4 percent were car drivers; 27.42 percent were car passengers; 12 were identified as unknown car occupants; 223, or 1.78 percent, were truckdrivers; and 29 people were identified as truck passengers.

"One could logically say that during the time period of ‘95 to ‘98, car drivers were mostly responsible for the death of 223 truckdrivers," said Todd Spencer, executive vice president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association.

"But when legislators across the nation try to make our roads safer, they often target truckers and suggest `solutions' such as dual speed highways that actually make highways less safe for all drivers."

The top two driver errors, according to the study, were failure to stay in lane and failure to yield the right-of-way. Other factors included driving too fast, failure to obey signs and inattention.

That is why AAA is opposed to different speed limits, spokesman William Visser said, as reported by North New Jersey News.

"Anything that is done like this requires a lot of investigation and studies before you jump on the bandwagon and say this is a cure-all for accidents involving trucks," he said. "Our information is that when you have two speed limits like that, you cause an additional problem."

Visser said a typical problem caused by dual speed limits was cars rapidly approaching the rear of a slower-moving truck. That already happens on steep grades or when a driver is inattentive.

"People do have these collisions because they don't realize how slow the truck is going," Visser said. "In other words, the safest thing out there is to have everyone going the same speed."

--By Dick Larsen, senior editor