B.C. speed limits likely to change
SAFETY: Things could speed up on highways, while urban roads may see drivers forced to slow down
Speed limits could rise and fall simultaneously in B.C. as reviews of too-low highway limits and too-fast urban limits are under way.
New B.C. Transportation Minister Todd Stone has asked his staff to review highway speeds with an eye to increasing speed limits where it is safe to do so.
At the same time, politicians concerned about urban safety are asking for city street speed limits to be reduced from 50 km/h to 40 km/h.
Stone, recently installed as transportation minister by Premier Christy Clark, said his staff will review all speed limits with an eye to submitting recommendations by next spring.
“I’m from Kamloops, and I hear continually that the speed limits are low,” Stone told The Province on Thursday. “We’re looking at the highways that currently have speed limits ranging from 90 to 110 km/h.”
Clark, who won a recent byelection in the Okanagan riding of Westside-Kelowna, said she often hears from her constituents that highway speed limits are too slow.
While the Coquihalla Highway — the quickest route connecting Kamloops and Kelowna with the Lower Mainland — has a posted speed of 110 km/h, Stone concedes many motorists travel much faster than that. “It happens all the time,” he said. “Speed itself is not the No. 1 reason for crashes — failure to yield, distracted driving and drunk driving are all higher.”
Stone said his staff will compile stats based on what speed 85 per cent of drivers are now driving compared to existing limits.
“At the end of the day, what is really driving this is increased safety.”
At the same time, Victoria Coun. Shellie Gudgeon and her councilmates will ask delegates to the upcoming Union of B.C. Municipalities convention to endorse a plan to reduce municipal street speed limits from 50 km/h to 40 km/h.
Gudgeon’s point is not that people shouldn’t drive fast when it’s appropriate — she drives a Porsche and an Audi and backs Stone’s highway-limit increase depending on the stretch of road — but that slower driving in cities will increase the quality of life.
“Speed limits came in when cities were autocentric — the official speed limit in laneways is 50 km/h,” said Gudgeon. “If we want to have the most livable cities in the world, we should reduce our speeds and send a powerful message that the streets are to be shared.
“The default speed limit would be 40 km/h, but an arterial or a major road could be posted 50 km/h or even 60 km/h.”
The motion will be discussed when delegates gather for the UBCM convention in Vancouver from Sept. 16-20.
Dr. Lloyd Oppel, who chairs the Council on Health Promotion for the B.C. Medical Association, said he’s prepared to back both higher highway speeds and lower city speeds if research shows it’s the right thing to do. “They both may have a place,” said Oppel. “The government needs to complete a health impact assessment to determine the impacts, everything from pedestrian safety to auto emissions.
“We would be in favour of any move that would improve public health.
“You want to study the situation properly before you draw those conclusions.”