Idaho Speeding Laws

Basic Speed Law: No person shall drive a vehicle at a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent under the conditions and having regard to the actual and potential hazards then existing.  IDAHO § 49-654(1)

Penalty for Exceeding Speed Limit

A first time violator may be:

• fined not more than $100, and
• the violator’s license may be suspended not more than one year.

Penalty for Reckless Driving

A first time violator may be:

• fined between $25 and $300,
• sentenced to jail time between five to 90 days, and
• the violator’s license may be suspended not more than 30 days

Speed Limits

• 75 MPH on interstate highways
• 65 MPH on Stats highways
• 55 MPH in other locations
• 35 MPH in either a residential, business or urban district

Idaho Speeding Laws

Idaho has what is known as an “absolute” speed limit law. There is no trick to how this works: If the sign says 40 mph and you drive 41 mph or more, you have violated the law. In other words, you are guilty if you drive over the speed limit. In Idaho you may be able to make three possible defenses:

• Attacking the officer’s determination of your speed. To do this you must discover what method the officer used to cite you and then learn about the ways to attack that particular method.
• Claiming an emergency forced you to exceed the speed limit to avoid serious damage or injury to yourself or others.
• Claiming that the officer mistook your car for another car. With so many similar-looking cars, it is possible that a cop could see a speeding car, lose sight of it around a corner, and then wrongly pick out your car farther down the road.

Note that in Idaho you can be ticketed for driving at an unsafe speed, even if that speed does not violate the posted limit -- for example, driving exactly at the maximum mph posted limit on the freeway amidst slower and heavy traffic, in a dense fog, or in a driving rainstorm or blizzard.

Point System

An offender's license is suspended for 30 days, 90 days or 6 months, if they respectively accumulate 12 points within 12 months, 18 points within 24 months or 24 points within 36 months.  Note:  Three (3) points are deducted from a driver's record if they attend traffic school prior to a suspension; this can only occur once in a 3-year period

The following points are assessed for speeding and speed related offenses:  One (1) MPH to 15 MPH over the speed limit-3 points; inattentive driving-3 points; 16 or more MPH over the speed limit-4 points; a violation of the minimum speed rule (including not driving in the right-hand lane when proceeding at less the normal rate of speed)-3 points; a violation of a posted speed limit on an elevated structure-3 to 4 points; and, racing on the highways-4 points.