ATLANTA, Ga. — Imagine a world where driving from Atlanta to Savannah on I-16 meant locking your cruise control at a crawling 55 mph. No matter how wide open the road, passing that “double nickel” threshold could cost you a ticket.
That was the reality solidified on January 2, 1974, when President Richard Nixon signed the National Maximum Speed Law (NMSL). Enacted as an emergency response to the 1973 oil crisis, the law mandated a federal 55 mph speed limit nationwide to curb gasoline consumption.
While the law is long gone, its legacy continues to shape how Georgians drive today—from the rural interstates to the dreaded “Super Speeder” fines.
The “double nickel” era
For over two decades, Georgia’s highways were federally throttled. The 55 mph limit was famously unpopular, inspiring songs like Sammy Hagar’s “I Can’t Drive 55” and creating a culture of CB-radio-wielding drivers looking out for “Smokey.”
Despite the frustration, the law had unintended side effects. While fuel savings were modest (estimated at around 1%), traffic fatalities dropped significantly nationwide, leading Congress to keep the law in place for safety reasons long after the oil crisis subsided.
Georgia hammers down: The 1996 shift
The federal grip on speed limits finally loosened in 1995 when Congress repealed the NMSL, returning power to the states. Georgia didn’t waste time.
On July 1, 1996, Georgia officially raised the speed limit on rural interstates to 70 mph, ending the 55 mph era. Drivers on major arteries like I-75 and I-95 could finally legally drive at speeds that matched the flow of modern traffic.
Today, Georgia’s speed limits are tailored to the road:
- 70 mph on rural interstates.
- 65 mph on urban interstates (like the Perimeter, I-285).
- 55 mph remains the standard for many two-lane state routes.
Rise of the “super speeder”
With higher limits came the need for stricter enforcement against extreme recklessness. In 2010, Georgia enacted the “Super Speeder” Law, a piece of legislation designed to hit dangerous drivers where it hurts: their wallets.
Under this law, you are designated a “Super Speeder” if you are convicted of driving:
- 85 mph or more on any road or highway.
- 75 mph or more on any two-lane road.
Violators face a $200 state fee in addition to their local speeding ticket. Interestingly, the revenue from these fines doesn’t just disappear into a general fund; it helps explicitly fund Georgia’s trauma care hospital system, directly supporting the emergency rooms that treat crash victims.
From 8 mph to 70 mph
To see how far we’ve come, one need only look at the local history books. In 1909, the city of Smyrna, Georgia, passed an ordinance setting the speed limit at a blistering 8 mph. A local newspaper at the time warned that “unwary motorists” would be “pinched” for daring to go faster.
From 8 mph buggies to 70 mph interstates, Georgia’s philosophy of speed has always been a balance between getting there fast and getting there alive. As you drive today, remember that while the “double nickel” is history, the radar is still very much active.
