A new IIHS study shows that increases in speed limits over two decades have cost 33,000 lives in the U.S. In 2013 alone, the increases resulted in 1,900 additional deaths, essentially canceling out the number of lives saved by frontal airbags that year.

"Although fatality rates fell during the study period, they would have been much lower if not for states' decisions to raise speed limits," says Charles Farmer, IIHS vice president for research and statistical services and the author of the study.

Maximum speed limits are set by the states, and they have been on the rise since 1995. However, during most of the 1970s and 1980s, the threat of financial penalties held state speed limits to 55 mph.

http://www.iihs.org/iihs/news/desktopnews/speed-limit-increases-cause-33-000-deaths-in-20-years