A bill that would overturn the split speed limit in Illinois has passed the House and is now headed to Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who is likely to veto the measure.

The bill, SB2374, would eliminate provisions in Illinois law that set up a slower, 55 mph speed limit for any vehicle over 8,000 pounds traveling on rural interstates. Other vehicles on those roads can travel 65 mph; all speed limits would remain 55 mph in urban areas.

SB2374 passed the House May 18 by a vote of 81-37. It passed the full Senate by a vote of 37-15 March 4. Both votes are more than the two-thirds necessary to override a veto should Blagojevich reject the bill.

And a veto is likely.

“He vetoed it last year and he will do the same this year,” Rebecca Rausch, a spokeswoman for Gov. Rod Blagojevich, told Land Line. The governor’s reasons are the same this time as last time.

“He filed a veto message last year when he vetoed what looks like a very similar bill, if not identical,” Rausch said. “This is a safety issue; there are statistics that point to the devastating impact an increase in speed for truckers would do.”

Rausch said the State Police were opposing the bill this year. The law-enforcement agency did not oppose the bill last year, but opposition from the State Police two years ago doomed a similar bill. Also opposing the bill, she said, are the AAA Chicago Motor Club and the Illinois Department of Transportation.

The apparently veto-proof majorities the bill carried this year are no guarantee that the General Assembly would override a veto from Blagojevich. A similar measure, HB1186, passed both Houses of the General Assembly last year, but was vetoed by the governor. Even though it initially passed by more votes than needed to override a veto, an attempt to reverse Blagojevich’s action failed in the House by only two votes.

The movement to end split speeds in the state has many supporters. SB2374 was introduced by state Sen. George Shadid, D-Pekin, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, and it gathered a number of co-sponsors.

OOIDA and other trucking industry officials also fought for passage of HB1186 last year and SB2374 this year. They cited federal statistics showing that split speed limits lead to more accidents.

However, a number of other groups, including the AAA Chicago Motor Club, fought both bills, often pointing to the same data. A last-minute offensive mounted by AAA killed HB1186 last year.

--by Mark H. Reddig, associate editor

Mark Reddig can be reached at mark_reddig@landlinemag.com.