Coordinated campaign aims to crack down on speeders in Mass., N.H., and Maine

National highway administrators remind drivers to slow down and reach their destination safely.

Check your speedometer.

A regional task force organized by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is working with local law enforcement to stop speeding in its tracks.

Officials from the NHTSA, law enforcement representatives, and highway safety officials from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, and Connecticut announced the initiative during a joint news conference on Thursday in Seabrook, New Hampshire.

Arthur Kinsman, the regional administrator for NHTSA, told Boston.com that 22 states from Maine to Florida are coordinating with the agency on the speeding enforcement campaign.

“It’s not only about giving out tickets,” said Kinsman on Friday. “But the visibility of police out there deters unsafe behaviors such as speeding.”

The police aren’t looking to hassle drivers, but Kinsman said it doesn’t take long to find people speeding and driving aggressively at excessive speeds.

“We are interested in people being able to go on vacation and get home safely,” he said.

At the press conference, New Hampshire State Police Lt. Christopher Storm said there will be an increase in enforcement patrols statewide, including using aircraft watching for extremely unsafe drivers.

In New Hampshire alone, the State Police report they have stopped more than 700 vehicles going 90 mph or faster this year, including 71 drivers traveling at 100 mph or more.

The campaign launch comes as new data shows that while there has been a slight dip in overall roadway deaths, speeding fatalities reached a 14-year high in 2021 and make up almost one-third of all traffic fatalities nationwide.

Between 2021 and 2022, 18% of all drivers involved in fatal traffic crashes were speeding at the time of the crash, and 29% of all those killed in crashes were in speeding-related one, according to an NHTSA report.

According to the NHTSA, many drivers in speeding-related crashes also tend to engage in other risky driving behaviors.

Drivers in fatal crashes who were speeding were also impaired by alcohol more frequently than drivers who were not speeding. Additionally, more than half of speeding drivers were not wearing a seat belt, compared to 23% of non-speeding drivers.

An NHSTA study found that speeding-related crashes significantly increase with the number of speeders, suggesting that more vehicles on the road do not lead to more crashes if they drive at or below the speed limit.

The study also found that decoy or unoccupied law enforcement vehicles, issuing citations, and digital speed signs reduce speeding at deployment locations, even after they are no longer there.

The national campaign is supported by a $9.6 million national media buy featuring English and Spanish ads running on TV, radio, and digital platforms. The ads target drivers between 18 and 44, which data shows are most likely to be involved in speed-related fatal crashes.

“I think there’s a certain acceptance of speed,” said Kinsman. “Besides seat belts, it is the oldest traffic safety problem in the books. I think people become numb to it.”

Drivers tend to go at the speed at which the traffic is moving, he said. Often, the traffic travels at speeds exceeding the limit, and the officers show discretion in what they do — typically only targeting people who are way over the limit.

Kinsman reminds drivers that “speed is very unforgiving.”

Even though cars are better built today with safety features, he said it is essential not to take for granted that nothing will happen out there.

“The faster you go, the less room you have for error,” Kinsman said.

“It’s basic,” he continued. “Wear your seat belt and try to drive at a respectable, safe speed.”