SPEEDING PENALTIES ARE REDUCED TO CUT CASELOAD IN COURTS

As Congress considers allowing states to set highway speed limits instead of following federally mandated limits, Missouri has taken another step: Breaking state speed limits is no longer a misdemeanor. It is now just an infraction.

The result of the change, which goes into effect Aug. 28, is that penalties will be lower for getting tickets from the Missouri Highway Patrol. The maximum penalty for misdemeanor speeding was $500 plus up to a year in jail. The maximum for a speeding infraction is $200 and no jail time.

Will this produce a rash of heavy-footed motorists? Some safety-conscious Missourians worry that it will. There also is concern that the softened penalties for speeding will magnify any increases in speed limits that could result from changes at the federal level.

Speed limits already are pretty much ignored on most state highways. The 65-mph limit on interstate highways mean many motorists set their cruise controls between 70 and 75 mph. Highway patrol officers rarely stop vehicles going a few miles over the speed limit unless there are other factors that imperil safety or lives.

But there is still a strong incentive to obey speed laws. In spite of the changes in how state speeding tickets are processed through the courts, the old point system is still in place. That means ticketed drivers are still subject to losing their licenses if they accumulate enough points, whether from speeding or other traffic infractions.

One aim of the changes is to unclog the court system. Currently, misdemeanor speeding tickets often turn into lengthy legal situations. Speeding infractions, with their reduced penalties, are less likely to be fought so aggressively, and the option of a jury trial has been removed.

There will always be speeders, regardless of the law and regardless of the speed limit. An important part of convincing motorists to drive safely is education. More emphasis on the consequences of driving too fast, while intoxicated or carelessly is an important part of the overall effort to keep highways safe.

Keeping the point system intact while lowering the legal impact of speeding is likely to be enough to keep most motorists in check. No one wants to lose a driver's license. Those who don't care always have been a menace on the roads and will continue to endanger the lives of law-abiding drivers and passengers.