DESOTO COUNTY, MS (abc24.com) - Mississippi's highway speed limits may be going up soon. Lawmakers are considering upping the current 70 miles per hour to 75.
Police say the slight increase doesn't raise any safety concerns, but drivers with too much of a lead foot may find that faster speeds won't equal fewer tickets.
Drivers on the state's highways say bring on the speed. Lawmakers are debating raising the limit on three of the state's main highways: Interstates 55, 10 and Highway 78.
The bill would let the state's transportation departments decide where to raise the limits.
According to Deputy Southaven Police Chief Steve Pirtle, "One of the big things, will probably impact the most, is probably the tolerance officers give people that travel over the speed limit."
He says if drivers usually get away with six, seven, eight miles an hour over, "The higher the speeds those tolerances may come down to three, four, five miles an hour."
The Mississippi House has approved the increase. The bill is now under consideration in the Senate.
