New Highway 64 Bypass Seen As Racetrack For Some

The new bypass gives drivers an alternative to the stoplights and traffic of Highway 64 through Knightdale. However, state Trooper Beckley Vaughan said troopers are seeing speeds up to 150 miles per hour.

"We're clocking people at 110, 120, 130 miles per hour," he said. "The highest I've clocked someone was 155 mph and that was a gentleman on a motorcycle."

The problems are not just on the Highway 64 Bypass. Around the state, authorities said speeds above 100 mph have increased 175 percent since 1999.

"The troopers here today told me they've been busy already this morning handing out citations," Lt. Everett Clendenin said after a news conference at the patrol's Charlotte office to announce the crackdown, dubbed Operation Slow Down 2005.