Reckless on our Roads: Need for speed

Our NBC Connecticut Investigates series “Reckless On Our Roads” has examined everything from wrong-way drivers, to stop sign runners, to a community that eliminated traffic deaths eight years in a row.

Transportation experts have said speed, however, accounts for a third of all traffic fatalities.

In Connecticut, we have seen people driving fast for a long time, certainly during and after the pandemic. But over 150 mph???

State police recently arrested someone they said posted 84 videos on YouTube over the past year and a half.

Troopers said 22-year-old Brice Bennett unsafely passed motorists, creating a high risk of physical injury.   

In at least one video we reviewed, you could see what appears to be the motorcyclist “lane splitting," going at high speeds in the narrow gaps between lanes of cars on a clogged roadway, registering well over 100 mph on the motorcycle's speedometer in the video.

Bennett has been scheduled to go before a judge on June 6. He was charged with reckless driving, failure to drive in the proper lane and reckless endangerment.

Getting caught going over 85 mph in Connecticut can get you charged with reckless driving and, if found guilty, a fine up to $300, and possibly jail time, according to state law.

Eric Jackson with the Connecticut Transportation Safety Research Center has tracked speeding through roadway beacons across our state and said speeding has dropped, slightly.

“It's starting to trail off, but we still have three to four times the people traveling at above 85 mph than we did pre-COVID,” Jackson said.

State data has shown the total amount of speeding tickets issued by state and local police in Connecticut went down during the pandemic, but they’ve come off their lows.

At the same time, the proportion of stops by state and local police in Connecticut since 2016, that were speed-related, has steadily risen.

When it comes to catching speeders, state police said a more restrictive pursuit policy now has troopers employing safer methods.

“Provided we have enough information, which we will, and we will get it, we will follow up with it after the fact, even if that's going and knocking on somebody's door to take them into custody for the charges," Connecticut State Police Sergeant Luke Davis said.

"At one point in time, this agency was over 1,200 strong. We're just over 900 at this point in time, so there are not as many of us on the roadway, but it doesn't mean that we're not present," Davis added.

We also got the opportunity to speak with someone who admits he speeds every day.

This man, who we’ll call “Bill,” said he’s 32 and from Hartford County. He said he’s never gotten a speeding ticket and does not fear getting one.

He did not want to share his name and wanted his voice and face disguised for our story.

He told us while he speeds all the time, he won’t go over 90 mph on the highway, and does it mostly to get to work on time.

“It's so variable that a lot of the time it feels like I have to speed to get around people, just to have, like, an average time to get to work,” he said.

Bill said he always has sped on Connecticut roads, but admitted he started going faster during the pandemic when fewer people were on the roads.

Bill said he has a need for speed because of Connecticut's slower drivers, who can linger in the left passing lane. He pointed out this happens often because our state has 56 left lane exits, the most in New England.

He said he wishes people would use the left lane on the highway only for passing. Jackson agreed.

“That left lane on the interstate truly is a passing lane. It's there for people to get around cars that are moving slower," Jackson said.

Bill explained the only thing that would get him to stop speeding would be if police put him in jail. He said he’s not worried about speed cameras, noting people he knows learn where they are, avoid them and keep speeding on parallel streets.

There are a handful of bills in the legislature involving speeders - one with higher fines for people exceeding 100 mph.

We surveyed Connecticut’s local police departments about their programs to deter speeders.

A few of them told us they have several initiatives planned, often with help from state and federal grants.

East Hampton Police Chief Dennis Woessner said, “Without a doubt I believe speeding has increased throughout the state. I also believe our fine structure is not effective. Everyone makes mistakes and occasionally goes over the limit, but when someone is caught doing 20, 30 or 40 mph over the limit there needs to be serious consequences for their actions. These speeds are intentional, and the driver needs to be held accountable before they kill someone. Seizing their car is a possibility, suspending their license does not work because you often see that individuals who are caught are driving on suspended licenses. Not sure what the answer is, but what we have is not working.”

As for how you can deal with a speeder coming up fast on you?

Jackson’s offered his best advice based on all the crashes he’s studied.

“Don't try and get in front of them. Don't try and stop them. Don't make lane changes to try and get out of their way, because they are going to try and change lane to get around you," he said.

You can see how other police departments say they're trying to tackle this issue below:

Town	Response
Berlin	Are you actively doing anti-speeding campaigns? Yes Have incidences of speeding increased or decreased within the state? Stayed about the same "This is a tough survey, because we have policy that severely limits pursuits of speeding vehicles. Often, speeding offenders just “take off” on officers who try to stop them. Our personnel are directed to not engage in pursuits for only speeding offenses."
Bloomfield	"The Bloomfield Police Department routinely assigns motor vehicle details for traffic enforcement throughout the town, speeding is just one component of motor vehicle operation violations addressed. I cannot comment as to the “incidences of speeding increased or decreased within the state” as we do not track that. As for the Town of Bloomfield, it has been a voiced concern and the PD has assigned details in response along with participating with various State of CT funding grants, and the Town’s Traffic Calming initiatives. Local Road Safety Committee | Bloomfield, CT"
Bristol	"The Bristol Police Department is carrying out special traffic enforcement initiatives throughout the spring with a focus on speed and traffic light violations. Our goal is to keep our motoring public and pedestrians safe by enforcing traffic laws within our city."
East Hampton	"The East Hampton Police Department has participated in two speed enforcement campaigns, both funded through grants from the State of Connecticut. The first one was from July 2023 to November 2024.  The second one was during March of 2025.  Both grants allowed a small department like the East Hampton Police Department to dedicate officers to speed enforcement outside of their normal patrol duties. They were paid overtime to actively seek out speeders on our local roads."
East Hartford	"While we do not have any active speeding campaigns, we do have a full-time traffic unit which does speed enforcement regularly. As far as speeding in general, we have seen an increase amongst drivers here in East Hartford. Our traffic unit stays committed to enforcing all types of traffic violations with an emphasis on speeding/reckless drivers."
Groton	Are you actively doing anti-speeding campaigns? Yes – we have a designated Traffic Unit that is directed to speeding “hot spots” throughout town. Have incidences of speeding increased or decreased within the state? Increased – significantly. This can be attributed to a variety of factors, but roughly since the pandemic they have increased – as has serious and fatal injury accidents. "With the arrival of spring and better weather, this will only increase. There are others on the road more frequently – bicyclists, motorcycles, etc.  We not only see an increase in speeding complaints, but also certain accidents and DUI operators, particularly around summer holidays. We will continue to have our Traffic Unit our (and our Marine Unit doing similar OUI and Speed enforcement on the water). Let us know if you want to get out with either of them."
Naugatuck	Are you actively doing anti-speeding campaigns? While our officers regularly conduct traffic enforcement, the specific state grant for the speed enforcement campaign begins in July which Naugatuck Police have and will be participating in. At the present time we are actively working the DUI and Distracted Driving campaigns. Have incidences of speeding increased or decreased within the state? Instances of speeding in the state still remain a priority. While “instances” of speeding is hard to quantify we can report the following: In 2023 Naugatuck Police issued 170 speed related infractions (Tickets). In 2024, the first year Naugatuck Police participated in the speed enforcement campaign, we issued 637 speed related infractions. Three months into the current year of 2025, we have issued 147 speed related infractions. Overall year over year, speed enforcement has increased. "Speed enforcement remains a top priority, we are committed to reducing the speeds on our roads and thus making safer travel for everyone. We ask driver’s to be conscious of their speeds and observe speed limit signs."
Norwalk	Are you actively doing anti-speeding campaigns? Our officers are constantly monitoring and patrolling roadways for traveling violations. This month is Distracted Driving Awareness Month and in addition to looking for cell phone violations our officers are also looking for speeding violations. We have patrol vehicles that are equipped with radar units to monitor for speed as well as lasar units. "Our department currently has a four officer traffic division which is supervised by a sergeant. The unit focuses on motor vehicle enforcement in the city of Norwalk and routinely focuses on speeding violations.  We utilize the UConn Connecticut Crash Data Repository, citizen complaints, and data we gather from speed signs for enforcement efforts. Officers operate marked police vehicle as well as police motorcycles for enforcement."
Windsor Locks	Are you actively doing anti-speeding campaigns? No, we are not. Have incidences of speeding increased or decreased within the state? We cannot speak for the state, but locally we have not seen a notable increase.
Wolcott	We just received a speed enforcement grant, and will be starting the campaign soon. Increased in the whole state. We are also starting the process of possibly getting speed cameras.