Traffic Safety - As enacted, authorizes counties to delegate authority to the chief administrative officer of the county highway department to set lower speed limits on county roads if the department employs an engineer who is capable of completing required engineering and traffic investigations. - Amends TCA Title 55, Chapter 8.

HB 975 allows Tennessee counties to delegate authority for setting lower speed limits on county roads to the chief administrative officer of the county highway department, provided the department employs a qualified engineer capable of conducting required traffic investigations. This directly affects county highway departments and their engineers, as they would now have the operational role in establishing speed limits when meeting the engineer requirement. The bill requires all speed limit changes to follow established traffic engineering practices and the MUTCD (Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices), with documentation maintained by the county. It amends existing law to clarify that county legislative bodies may delegate this authority via resolution, while preserving their ultimate authority to set limits. The key mechanism shifts decision-making flexibility to highway departments with qualified engineering staff, streamlining the process for localized speed adjustments.