Nixon's Other Legacy: Drive 55

On January 2, 1974, President Richard M. Nixon signed into law a national speed limit of 55 mph.  Prior to this, most limited access highways in the US ranged from 65 mph to 70 mph, with a few remote places (Montana and Nevada) not relying on a numerical limit at all.  The people of the US were suddenly saddled with roads designed to safely travel at speeds over 80 mph at an aggravating and seemingly crawling speed of 55 mph.  This was in response to the OPEC (“Arab”) Oil Embargo of 1973 due to the US support of Israel during the 1973 Arab-Israeli War.  Expected optimistically to save the nation about 2.2% on gasoline usage, the actual saving was more like a half percent.