New Mexico drivers will have to ease that foot off the gas pedal when traveling country roads with no posted speed limit or risk a ticket.
A law going into effect on New Year's Day reduces the speed limit on unmarked county roads from 75 mph to 55 mph.
State lawmakers decided that the default speed limit of 75 mph posed a safety risk on many county roads that were never engineered for speed. Those roads can be unpaved and lined with mailboxes.
County officials say posting specific speed limits along remote roadways requires an analysis and would cost money that is better spent on road maintenance.
In eastern New Mexico, Curry County alone has over 1,500 miles of roads with no posted speed limit.
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