Speed limits in Germany
In 1973, in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis, a federal speed limit of 100 km/h (62 mph) on Autobahns was imposed to help conserve fuel for fear of impending future shortages (not for environmental or safety reasons). The measure only lasted from December 1973 to March 1974; while the administration and the Bundestag were in favor of keeping the speed limit, the Bundesrat pushed to repeal the law. As a compromise, a "recommended speed" was introduced on Autobahns and "highways outside of built-up areas with a center divide or without a center divide and a continuous lane for overtaking in both directions". This law is basically still in effect today. Unrestricted non-Autobahn highways, however, have since become virtually non-existent or replaced by "Schnellstraßen", Autobahn-like expressways typically limited to 120 or 130 km/h and normally only covering a few kilometers.
Speed limits in the United States
The highest speed limits are generally on the West Coast and the inland eastern states, in inland western states, along with Arkansas and Louisiana, and on the Eastern Seaboard. Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, and Vermont have a maximum limit of , and Hawaii has a maximum limit of . The District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands have a maximum speed limit of . Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa have speed limits of . Two territories in the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands have their own speed limits: in Wake Island, and in Midway Atoll. Unusual for any state east of the Mississippi River, much of I-95 in Maine north of Bangor allows up to , and the same is true for up to 600 miles of freeways in Michigan. Portions of the Idaho, Montana, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming road networks have posted limits. The highest posted speed limit in the country is and can be found only on the Texas State Highway 130.