Communities that have genuine concerns about the speed that traffic is moving in their immediate neighborhood have ways in which they can bring their concerns to the relevant municipal authority for attention. There is a variety of tried and tested calming measures that can be implemented relatively rapidly to help reduce traffic speeds and make neighborhood roads and streets safer for residents. These include speed cushions, speed humps and bumps, as well as longer term measures which involve redesigning the shape of affected roads.
Dangerous speeding in a neighborhood can lead to despair and frustration if the concern is felt only at an individual level. The fact that there are clear opportunities for community concerns about speeding to be addressed means that residents who wish to address the speeding issue in their area need to coordinate their concerns in a methodical way before the matter can be brought to relevant municipal authorities.
Traffic calming measures: what’s available?
Traffic calming is a local measure which is separate from, but related to, speed zoning. Speed zoning is the widespread use of speed limits used to make public roads, streets and highways as safe as possible while at the same time permitting the effective movement of traffic from A to B. Speed zoning is primarily the responsibility of MassDOT in this state, although it relies on consultation with municipal representatives, safety officials and local police departments.
Traffic calming is more of a local measure to address safety issues in specific neighborhoods where it has been found that the speed limit that is already in place is not making the streets safe enough for residents, whether they are other road users, pedestrians or cyclists. Traffic calming measures that have been proven to have been successful include:
- speed cushions;
- speed humps;
- speed bumps;
- raised pedestrian crossings;
- raised intersections;
- chicanes;
- median islands;
- mini roundabouts;
- neighborhood traffic circles.
Of the calming measures listed above, the measures that can be implemented the fastest are speed cushions, which are vertical rubber structures, typically around 3” high and 6 to 7’ long. They force road users to reduce their speed to around 20 mph as a maximum, without actually making driving unsafe or dangerous. They are usually designed to be installed as a stop gap measure for a year or so before more permanent structures are installed if analysis from the use of speed cushions is positive.
Speed humps are the next easy to implement calming measure. These are permanent fixtures in the road surface, typically a little higher than speed cushions and a little longer. Speed bumps, on the other hand, often used in places like parking lots, are the same height as speed humps, but shorter in length, slowing the speed of vehicles down even more.
Cushions, humps and bumps need to be spaced regularly along a road or street at such distances that motorists can see ahead and safely adjust their speeds to a slower level without racing between each hump or bump, then suddenly having to brake again.
Raised intersections and pedestrian crossings are similar in their designed effect as humps and bumps, but by their very nature are restricted to only certain locations.
Chicanes, median islands and mini roundabouts are longer term measures which are designed to slow traffic by narrowing the width of a street or making motorists slow down to make while turning a corner or corners. Because they involve road design and redesign, they may take longer to implement because of the cost involved.
How to go about requesting local traffic calming measures such as speed humps
It is unlikely that your local municipality officials will take too much notice of individually expressed concerns. They are much more likely to take notice and appropriate action if the concerns are seen as widespread. This means that your first step should be to gauge the level of concern in the neighborhood where you think traffic is moving too fast for safety. Talk to your neighbors. Make contact in any way possible, which depends on communication channels in your immediate community, such as social media groups, community notice boards, shopping center notice boards, flyers, etc.
If the concern seems to be widespread, you may be able to arrange a meeting, preferably a face to face one in a local hall or other public venue. The initial meeting should be focused on sharing concerns and coming up with practical suggestions for traffic calming in your area. If the meeting is successful, then a committee or representatives could be chosen to do some research and coordinate an application to the local municipality for speed hump or bump implementation.
Research that needs to be done includes finding out which department is responsible for traffic calming measures and speeding controls. Specific individuals that should be contacted should be identified as well as any particular protocols to be followed.
Research should also include the incidence of accidents and injuries over a period of time which supports a need for traffic calming measures. The local municipal department may have a rule that it will undertake its own survey of traffic related incidents before it makes a decision about implementing measures to control speeds. Roads that are not regularly used by emergency vehicles, such as police and ambulances, or public transport, and roads that are relatively flat and are already in a 35mph speed zone are more likely to be acceptable for speed calming measures.
The concerned residents’ group that has been brought together to coordinate the application for speed hump or bump implementation could also start a petition to be signed by as many local concerned residents as possible to be presented to the relevant local department together with the completed application for traffic calming. Where a suitable application does not exist, then a carefully crafted letter explaining the concerns and the suggestions for suitable calming measures with justifications should be created and sent with the petition to the official who has been identified in charge of traffic control. Follow up contact if there is a delay in a response should be made with the department concerned.
Legal advice may be sought from a local attorney
A local attorney may be able to provide useful legal advice about requesting speed humps or bumps in your area. For more information, visit our website or contact us for a free initial legal consultation today