VAIL, Colo.—Some Eagle County officials want the state to lower the speed limit from 75 mph on a 16-mile stretch of Interstate 70 west of Vail, citing a high number of fatal traffic wrecks.
The Eagle County Public Safety Council has asked the Colorado Department of Transportation to lower the speed limit to 65 mph between Edwards, about eight miles west of Vail, and Eagle, about 24 miles west of Vail.
A study by the Eagle County Department of Health and Human Services cited the speed limit, along with the terrain, weather and wildlife crossings, for a high number of crashes on I-70 in Eagle County.
The study found 11 people die from vehicle crashes in Eagle County each year. The Public Safety Council said the county’s death rate for vehicle crashes is 20 percent higher than the statewide rate, and most of the county’s vehicle deaths occur on I-70.
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Information from: Vail Daily,
