The state House recently passed a bill that will allow speed limits on rural freeways to be raised to 75 mph. The limit was previously 70.

An engineering and safety study must be conducted before the bill can officially be passed, however, according to mlive.com

The bill was approved 56-53 in the state House.

Junior Hailey Baltosser is for raising the speed limit.

“People drive over the speed limit anyway,” Baltosser said. “People tend to drive safer when going faster.”

According to Rep. Bradford Jacobsen, an Oxford Republican who is in favor of the legislation, the state’s roads were designed for a 75-mph speed limit.

“That’s the speed that people feel safe traveling,” Jacobsen said in the Flint Journal.

The bill, if it becomes law, will raise the speed limit on I-75 north of Bay City and on I-69 between Flint and Lansing.

Rep. Marilyn Lane, D-Fraser, voted against the legislation.

She thinks that with the amount of potholes in the roads, it will be hazardous to raise the speed limit.

Junior Alexis Schwartz feels that raising the speed limit has safety issues.

“People speed as it is, so if the speed limit is raised, people will speed more,” Schwartz said. “This makes the roads more dangerous.”

The legislation includes a few other changes to the set speed limits.

The speed limit on unpaved, gravel highways without a fixed speed limit would be set at 55 mph.

In a county with a population of one million or more, the speed limit for gravel roads would reduced to 45 mph.

In addition, the speed limit on these gravel roads can be lowered to 35, only if in agreement with the county’s road commission, the Michigan State Police, and the municipality that the road is located within.

The legislation is now in the Senate.