SIGN LANGUAGE FOR MOTORISTS DRIVERS WARNED TO PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO

Motorists on Interstate 90 can drive faster today, but only where new speed limit signs are posted.

The state Department of Transportation and the Idaho State Police will unveil a new 70 mph speed limit sign for westbound traffic near the Northwest Boulevard intersection at 10 a.m. today.

That's one of two sections of I-90 that have new speed limits, but drivers need to read the signs carefully.

Although statewide speed limit changes go into effect today, officials said the posted limit prevails until new signs are put up.

"Until the signs are changed, the posted limits are law and Idaho State Police officers will strictly enforce them," said ISP Col. Ed Strickfaden.

Locally, state police aren't cutting drivers any slack as they grow accustomed to the six different speed zones from the Washington line to Montana.

"The speed limit will be strictly enforced as soon as it goes into place," said ISP Lt. Doug Camster.

Barbara Babic with the Idaho Department of Transportation said it may take one or two days to get all the signs up.

The department is also posting new signs to warn drivers when they approach a lower speed zone.

An oversized sign is going up on Lookout Pass to warn motorists entering Idaho that the speed limit is 55 mph on the Idaho side of the pass.

Montana did away with its day-time speed limit. A sign for motorists entering Montana lists the speed limit as whatever is "reasonable and prudent."

With the federal deregulation of speed limits, Idaho officials chose to base limits on what engineers judge to be safe speeds for a particular stretch of road. Idaho's new legislation allows speed limits to increase to 75 mph on interstate highways and to 65 mph on state highways.

The Transportation Board isn't expected to establish new speed limits for all secondary highways and roads until June.

Although motorists will pass through six speed zones on I-90 between Washington and Montana, Babic said the speed limit has only been changed in two sections.

The new speed zones are all at least 10 miles in length, "so it's not like it's up, down, up, down, up, down," Babic said.

The speed limit was raised to 75 mph from the Rose Lake junction to Osburn, and to 70 mph from Coeur d'Alene to the Washington state border.

The speed limit is also 70 mph on the Washington side.

Emergency workers asked the state not to increase the speed to more than 70 mph in the Post Falls area for safety reasons.

"The only thing I'm concerned with is people being able to accelerate and slow down on the off ramps without crashing," said Joel Butcher, manager of Post Falls Ambulance.

"People need to be aware that if they're going to merge into traffic, they need to be going a little faster."

Trouble spots in Post Falls include the tightly curved off-ramp to Highway 41, which already sees regular rollovers, and the off-ramp to Seltice Way, Butcher said.

Statewide, transportation workers have 264 signs to change.

Here are some speed limit changes in other parts of the state:

Interstate 15 will move from 65 mph to 75 mph from the Utah border to Montana, except for a stretch through Pocatello where the limit will be 65.

Interstate 84 goes to 75 mph from Oregon to Caldwell, to 65 mph from Caldwell to the Broadway exchange in Boise and then 75 mph to the Utah border.

Interstate 184, the Boise Connector, will move from 55 mph to 65 mph to the River Street exit.

All of Interstate 86 will have a 75 mph limit.

U.S. 95 is 65 mph from Oregon to Council, 55 mph from Council to west of New Meadows, 65 mph from New Meadows to south of Riggins, 55 mph from south of Riggins to the time zone, 65 mph from the time zone to Winchester, 55 mph Winchester-Lapwai and 65 mph from Lapwai to 12 miles north of Lewiston.

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