HITTING THE BRAKES
City may consider lower speed limits
Saskatoon city hall seems ready to join the cities that are engaged in a difficult debate about lower speed limits on residential roads.
On Tuesday, city council’s transportation committee will consider a proposal by city administration to move forward with consideration of lower residential speed limits.
A City of Saskatoon report suggests reviews of complaints about speeding in neighbourhoods throughout Saskatoon shows motorists may not actually be travelling faster or much faster than 50 kilometres per hour, Saskatoon’s default speed limit for residential roads.
“The posted speed limit may not align with current individual and neighbourhood community values, or expectations,” the report says. “Many municipalities have reduced, or are considering reducing the posted speed limit on neighbourhood streets.”
The city has conducted 40 neighbourhood traffic reviews with another 10 in progress where the most common complaint raised is speeding through neighbourhoods, the report says. As a result, the city has conducted about 500 speed reviews on residential streets.
The city sets a threshold for the share of vehicles travelling at 55 km/h to determine whether it takes action to address speeding, but in many cases, vehicle speeds do not meet that threshold.
“This perception of speeding is a result from the vehicle operating (at) speeds ‘feeling ’ too fast for residents,” the report explains.
The report also suggests the possibility of playground zones, which have been raised several times by city councillors.
No alternate speed limit is proposed, but information in the report details that studies show the risk of severe injury or death declines at lower vehicle speeds: From 80 per cent at 50 km/ h to to 40 per cent at 40 km/h to 10 per cent at 30 km/ h.
As for commuters, the report suggests lowering the residential speed limit to 30 km/ h would only add one minute to the average Saskatoon commute of just under 20 minutes.
The report cites Statistics Canada data that the average Saskatoon commute of 3.95 kilometres includes less than one kilometre on residential streets.
The report stems from an inquiry by Coun. Ann Iwanchuk in 2017 that sought to determine whether speeding concerns were actually supported by data or whether in many cases the speed just seemed faster than 50 km/ h.
But there are plenty of lead-footed drivers in Saskatoon, too. The 18-officer Saskatoon Police Service traffic unit nailed 6,300 drivers for speeding in the first seven months of this year, the report says.
Mayor Charlie Clark tried to convince his colleagues to consider a residential speed limit when he was a city councillor in 2011, but the effort failed. A report from city administration at the time suggested a lower speed limit would not substantially reduce actual speeds and the cost of posting signs would be high.
In 2016, city hall opted to lower the speed limit to 40 km/h in Montgomery Place, a unique neighbourhood in Saskatoon with virtually no sidewalks. City council backed the speed limit reduction, even though city administration staff warned they did not believe the move would actually reduce speeds.
A 2017 study of vehicle speeds in Montgomery showed the new speed limit produced mixed results. Lower average speeds were identified at some locations, while in others speeds marginally increased.
If the transportation committee supports considering lower speed limits, it will then be debated at council on Oct. 22. No strategy on how to proceed would be expected before next summer.
Many municipalities have reduced, or are considering reducing the posted speed limit on neighbourhood streets.