Speed Limit Signs In Texas Are Completely Missing
This past weekend, we took a little road trip for a baseball tournament for one of my sons. Levelland was the destination, and there are numerous different routes to get there. We opted for the quickest one that took us through Hereford, Dimmitt, and more.
There was some road construction going on along the way (surprise, surprise), so there were constant speed limit changes. There's also those small towns you drive through where the speed limit drops as well as you enter town.
Here's what I can say. They do a GREAT job of telling you when they want you to slow down. I was always aware of when that speed limit was going to be dropping so I wouldn't end up getting a ticket. Great, that's how it should be.
One little problem here...they never tell you when it's ok to speed back up.
No joke when I tell you the amount of times on this drive that I would slow down, sometimes to 40-45 mph and not have a clue when I could speed back up. As I'd drive through a town, I'd be cruising along at 40 mph. I'd make it through town, and two miles later, I'm still cruising at 40.
Cars are flying past me on the left side or racing up behind me. I'm thinking to myself, did I miss something? Was there a sign posted somewhere? The short answer is no. I assume the drivers around me just noticed they were out of town and it was ok to get back to 70-75 mph.
They weren't incorrect, however, they were guessing. I watched for those signs going both directions, and I swear they never appeared. How did I decide to go ahead and speed back up? Yeah, I looked at the GPS on my phone and checked the speed limit there.
However, those speed limits on the GPS aren't always correct. I've seen plenty of times where it said 75 mph and the TRUE speed limit was only 65 mph. So, if we can't trust GPS to be correct, and there are no signs posted when it jumps back up, what are we supposed to do?
Long story short, Texas needs to do a better job of posting when you can speed back UP for those of us who wish to follow the rules of the road. Something tells me if I get pulled over, saying "Look officer, I didn't see a sign to be able to speed up, but my GPS said the speed limit was 75" isn't going to fly.
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Gallery Credit: Billy Jenkins