WHEREAS, speed-related crashes, deaths, and injuries have not declined in the past decade, despite roadway and vehicle safety improvements; and

WHEREAS, today’s motor vehicles are capable of being operated at extremely high speeds that exceed the design criteria for both highways and safety devices, with drivers traveling at those high speeds in relative comfort and silence; and

WHEREAS, there is a great disparity in the weights and sizes of vehicles on roadways today, making speeding by heavy commercial vehicles particularly dangerous; and

WHEREAS, our streets and highways have become increasingly congested and in need of repair; and

WHEREAS, our contemporary culture is one in which many drivers are rushing to get from one destination to another, and this may lead to excessive driving speeds, which in turn could lead to aggressive driving and road rage, speed-related crashes, deaths, and injuries; and

WHEREAS, vehicle stopping distances increase and effective maneuvering space decreases exponentially as speed increases; and

WHEREAS, the extent to which law enforcement officers and their agencies allow tolerances when enforcing speed limits can encourage or discourage speed violations; now therefore be it

RESOLVED, that the International Association of Chiefs of Police joins with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the Federal Highway Administration in urging all state, county, local and tribal law enforcement agencies and individual officers assigned to patrol duties to place a renewed emphasis on the management of speeds on our streets and highways; and be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, that law enforcement agencies join the effort to reduce speed-related deaths, injuries and property damage by making speed enforcement a high priority; by encouraging the public, through education and enforcement, to reduce their travel speeds to the speed limit; and by encouraging departments and officers to re-examine carefully the extent to which their approach to speed enforcement tolerances impact travel speeds.