Going 168 mph? Pay a fine — that’s it. Kansas won’t punish extreme speeding as reckless
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- A motorcyclist clocked at 168 mph on I‑35 received a $1,248 civil speeding ticket.
- A Kansas Senate committee repeatedly advanced the bill. GOP leaders declined floor votes.
- KDOT data show 664 deaths, nearly 2,600 serious injuries from 2020–2024 speeding crashes.
A motorcyclist clocked by radar at an alleged 168 mph on Interstate 35 near Ottawa, Kansas, faces a $1,248 ticket for the traffic violation — and that’s it.
Kansas lawmakers have stalled on amending the state’s reckless driving to include excessive speeding, which would make it a misdemeanor rather than a civil violation.
A bill in the Kansas Legislature that was recommended favorably by the Kansas Senate Transportation Committee earlier this year would have added driving more than 35 mph over the posted speed limit to the state’s definition of reckless driving — but it never made it to the Senate floor for a vote.
“We keep passing it out of committee and we can’t get it above the line,” said Sen. Brenda Dietrich, a Topeka Republican who expressed frustration at the inaction on the reckless driving legislation.
Dietrich said she routinely witnesses excessive speeding during her commutes on Interstate 70.
“I do 80 (mph) even though the posted limit is 75. I will admit to that,” Dietrich said. “And honestly, they are just passing me at what has got to be well beyond 90 miles an hour. And it’s kind of scary. They’re weaving in and out of traffic at these really high speeds.”
Reckless driving bills
Different versions of the reckless driving bill have been circulated since at least 2022. But year after year, the Senate’s GOP leadership has declined to bring the bill to the floor.
Senate President Ty Masterson, an Andover Republican who’s running for governor, did not respond to a request for comment on Thursday. Neither did Senate Majority Leader Chase Blasi, a Wichita Republican who directs the flow of legislation in the chamber.
Under current Kansas law, reckless driving is defined as operating a vehicle in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property.
The effort to amend the state’s reckless driving law is supported by the Kansas Department of Transportation, the Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police, the Kansas Sheriffs Association, the Kansas Peace Officers Association, and the Kansas Highway Patrol.
No opponents testified against the bill in 2026, either in person or in writing.
The danger of speeding
At a hearing in late January, KDOT’s legislative liaison Catherine Magaña told the Senate transportation committee that the bill they were considering was about safety.
Speeding makes the roads less safe for everyone because it cuts a driver’s reaction time and raises the likelihood of a crash, Magaña said. And when crashes happen at higher speeds, they tend to be far more severe, leading to more serious injuries and deaths.
In 2024,120 people died in 106 fatal crashes across Kansas that were attributed to speeding, KDOT data shows. Also in 2024, speeding resulted in an additional 528 people who were seriously injured in 413 suspected serious injury crashes.
Over the five years of 2020 to 2024, 664 people have died, and nearly 2,600 people were seriously injured in speeding-related crashes, Magaña said.
“The additional penalties that this bill creates are meant to deter drivers from excessively speeding and risking their lives and the lives of everyone else on the road,” Magaña said. “This bill would be another tool to help curb this dangerous and risky behavior by holding drivers accountable.”
Ed Klumpp, representing the law enforcement associations, testified that speeds at that level are intentional, and nobody can say they didn’t realize they were going that fast.
“They are willful acts and the risk to persons and property are obvious, and they’re clearly disregarded by somebody driving this fast,” Klumpp said.
Capt. Matt Payne with the Kansas Highway Patrol said the agency has seen a significant increase in the number of citations issued for speeds of 100 mph or higher. In 2019, the KHP issued 1,758 such citations. In 2025, troopers issued 2,488 citations, a 41% increase.
Kansas law
Under Kansas case law, speed alone does not necessarily constitute reckless driving, and the way the law is written, troopers need to address other aggravating factors, Payne said.
The bill that stalled out in the Senate this spring would have expanded the definition of reckless driving and given judges more leeway to punish drivers based solely on excessive speeding.
Sen. Jeff Klemp, a Lansing Republican and vice chair of the transportation committee, said incidents like the motorcycle in Franklin County allegedly traveling at more than double the speed limit underscore the need to reevaluate the state’s reckless driving penalty structure.
Klemp said he’s optimistic about the bill finally getting across the finish line in 2027.
“I think we have it in a state that we’ll be able to move that forward next session,” Klemp said. “I don’t think there’s going to be any hiccups on that. It’s always a little disappointing when good legislation doesn’t move as fast as we’d like it to move.”
