The Centre has approved a proposal to raise speed limits in cities and on highways across the country. As per recent reports, the new limits would allow cars to go up to 70 kmph in cities and motorcycles up to 60 kmph. However, state governments will retain the power to set lower limits in their jurisdictions.

Reportedly, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday approved the raising of speed limits not just for city roads but also for highways and expressways. It will then be sent to the Law Ministry for vetting before it is formally notified and becomes applicable.

The reports further highlight that the new speed limits will allow cars to go faster by 20 kmph. The speed limit for expressways will be raised to 120 kmph from the existing 100 kmph. The limit for national highways will be increased to 100 kmph from the current 80 kmph. Interestingly, this is the first time that the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has set speed limits for different types of roads. Earlier, the practice was to just set the national maximum speed limit for different categories of vehicles. At present, the urban speed limits as set by local authorities range are in the range of 40-50 kmph.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 15, 2018 12:33 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).