COLUMBUS – Drivers encountering fewer vehicles on Ohio roads during the coronavirus shutdown are finding their feet made of lead.
Researchers at Ohio State’s Center for Urban and Regional Analysis compared traffic data in Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati from March 28 to April 19 last year and this year and found that, in all three cities, while the average level of speeding was up slightly, the levels of ”extreme speeding” have increased dramatically, said center director Harvey Miller, professor of geography.
Widespread school and business closings and Ohio’s stay-at-home order took effect on or around March 23.
Using information from the private transportation data company INRIX showing speeds on various segments of major roads and highways in the three cities, Miller and his fellow researchers found that, in 2019, nearly all the road segments that showed speeding were recording speeds at only a few miles per hour above normal.
But in 2020, many more road segments showed much higher levels of speeding, their analysis showed.
The number of road segments showing speeding by drivers has more than tripled in Columbus, from 18 percent to 57 percent, and more than doubled in Cleveland (20 percent to 54 percent) and Cincinnati (18 percent to 48 percent).
“The lack of traffic has really released the desire that some people feel to drive fast,” Miller said
On a section of I-270 on the west side, Miller says speeding has averaged 7 to 28 mph above “reference speed,” which is calculated by INRIX as the average speed for that area when there is no major traffic. It is normally close to the speed limit.
In all three cities, the average level of speeding above the reference speed since the pandemic began is between 2.1 mph and 2.6 mph, compared to a year ago when the average was 0.8 mph to 1 mph.
“The message is that less traffic doesn’t necessarily mean our streets are safer. In some ways, they may be more hazardous because we’re seeing more dangerous speeding,” Miller said.