The impact of increasing speed limit in Turkey: The case of Ankara-Sivrihisar road section

In this study, the impacts of increasing the speed limit for dual carriageways in Turkey were examined by focusing on 114 km long Ankara-Sivrihisar road section. This has been done by an economic analysis using the relevant indicators such as average speeds, travel times, accidents, fatalities, injuries, material damages, fuel consumption and environmental damages before and after the policy change. To our knowledge, this is the first study investigating the impacts of this public policy decision and our results may provide insight for policymakers in further speed limit decisions. The results indicate that the total benefits of increasing speed limit compensate for only 66% of its costs in the base scenario and 50% in the enhanced scenario in which indirect taxes are taken into account. Our cost-benefit analyses clearly show that the policy decision is not acceptable and seems not to be compatible with the policy objectives of Turkey towards improving traffic safety in all transport modes. Thus, this decision should be questioned as an effective public policy.