At governor's urging, lawmakers reject higher speed for trucks

SPRINGFIELD -- Truckers must still drive 55 mph after the Illinois House had second thoughts about raising the highway speed limit for semis to 65.

Prodded by Gov. Rod Blagojevich and safety experts, more than 30 state representatives ditched their previous support for the increase and sided with the governor that speed limits should stay where they are. After getting 90 votes in May, the plan for higher trucker speeds received just 57 on Wednesday.

Blagojevich issued a statement saying the Illinois House had done the "right thing." Earlier Wednesday, he'd stood under an interstate overpass in Chicago and said lawmakers who supported the change would be ''voting to kill people.''

Blagojevich spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch said the governor made personal phone calls to legislators on the issue but said he did not offer construction projects or other incentives in return.

Even if the higher speed limits had been imposed, suburban highways and tollways would have largely been unaffected as the new limit applied only to rural areas.

State transportation officials and the Illinois State Police opposed the increasing, pointing to how much longer it takes the massive trucks to stop at higher speeds.

Supporters, however, said it would be safer to have all traffic traveling at the same speed and may try again next year.