Speed limit lowered to 55 mph on stretch of Highway 16

An ITD crew changes a speed limit sign along Highway 16 Thursday morning.

STAR -- The speed limit along a portion of Highway 16 is now slower.

This morning the speed limit was lowered from 65 to 55 miles per hour on a four-mile stretch of the road.

The Idaho Transportation Department says they lowered it because there are simply too many accidents on the highway.

The speed limit reduction starts at the intersection with Idaho 44 and will reach just north of the Woodriver Cellars Winery.

ITD tells us in the last five years, there have been 55 crashes along that portion of the road.

One of those is an accident that took the life of 16-year-old Shauna Hill. The fatal crash happened last year at the intersection of Floating Feather Road and Highway 16.

ITD says they hope this change will help keep drivers safe.

"That portion of road has lots of access points, so there are a lot of cars that come and exit that road at any given time, so there are lots of speed variations along that section as it is," said ITD spokesperson Jessi Huizinga.

ITD tells us in the future there will be even more changes to this stretch of road, including clearing away roadside brush, making signs easier to read, adding lights at intersections, and increasing police patrols.