Southwest Michigan Drivers Go Fast, But Not the Fastest in Michigan

If you think no one's doing the speed limit on I-94 through Southwest Michigan, you're right. We have lots of lead-foot drivers. But we're not the biggest speed demons in the state. See some of the speeds on roads throughout the state.

WZZM obtained traffic speed data from the Michigan Department of Transportation for a story about how drivers were adjusting to new 75 mile-per-hour speed limits newly posted in rural northern Michigan.

More interesting to us were the speeds maintained by drivers on roads across Southwest Michigan.

On I-94 drivers at monitoring sites in Battle Creek and Mattawan keep their speeds at and average of 76 miles per hour, 6 mph higher than the posted 70 mph speed limit.

Higher average speeds of 81 mph were observed on I-75 between Flint and Saginaw and I-94 near Port Huron in St. Clair County. Both highways are posted at 70 mph, meaning drivers were going an average of 11 miles over the posted speed. Similarly speedy drivers clocked in at 81mph on M-6 near Grand Rapids, US 127 north of Lansing and on I-75 north of Bay City.

Where are the most rule-breaking drivers in the state? They appear to be in Menominee County in the Upper Peninsula. Drivers on a section of US 41 that's posted at 45 mph do an average of 66 mph, or 21 miles-per-hour over the speed limit.

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