New speed limit recommendations to be considered by council [There is a poll, vote!!] | GTAMotorcycle.com

New speed limit recommendations to be considered by council [There is a poll, vote!!]

FiReSTaRT

FiReSTaRT

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New speed limit recommendations to be considered by council
City council will consider a proposal Thursday that would make it easier for residents to request lower speed limits on local streets.

Last year council asked city staff to study the possibility of implementing a 30 km/h limit on some residential and side streets that meet the criteria to do so. The current speed limit, unless otherwise posted, is 50 km/h.

The general manager of the city's transportation department Stephen Buckley told CBC News that speed limits are again coming under scrutiny because increasingly drivers are resorting to side streets to avoid overwhelming congestion on primary thoroughfares. As a result, people living on residential streets are seeing more cars speeding past their homes.
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http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toron...dations-to-be-considered-by-council-1.3025853

There is a poll in this article, so I urge all GTAMers to make their voices heard in it.
 
They are talking about side streets and not main roads through residential areas. I don't believe they plan to blanket the whole residential area with speed limits, but certain side streets. Maybe use traffic calming techniques.
 
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FiReSTaRT said:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toron...dations-to-be-considered-by-council-1.3025853

There is a poll in this article, so I urge all GTAMers to make their voices heard in it.
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To be honest, don't really see a problem with lowering speed limit on residential streets and side streets. They are not talking about lowering the speed limit on Yonge, Bloor, University, Lakeshore, Richmond, Adelaide, Bathurst, etc. (unless I missed it somewhere). Traffic is bad enough already that you seldomly see anyone going 50km/h anyways.

The sidestreets in residential areas in the Toronto core are not really designed for cars to be hitting 50km/h. There are all-way stops within a short distance, with parked cars on one side usually, and the width is usually much narrower than the avg suburban side/residential streets outside the core.
 
My understanding is that at the moment they only apply 30km/h limits to streets that have traffic calming measures: speed humps, pinch points, brick road surface, narrow lanes.

https://goo.gl/maps/cFc3P
https://goo.gl/maps/qhknQ

CoT wants to introduce the 30km/h speed limits signs without having to use traffic calming devices. It will be up to the residents/businesses on that street. Each sign costs $275.

In my opinion this isn't 100% the way to go, because everyone would want their street's speed limit to be dropped. Who would say no to having their street's 50km/h limit dropped to 30km/h?

Although some people on this board will cry quotas, and pigs. It's actually the community that will be to blame, because they're the ones writing letters and contacting the police/councillors/city-hall about speeding on their streets.

Police are compelled to introduce speed enforcement programs.

When you drop the limit to 30km/h without changing the design of the road, it's very easy to go over.

Drivers who've been doing +10 assuming it's a 50 road will now be going +30 which is 2x the limit.
 
The perceived problem is that traffic is moving too quickly, on side streets, which is a dangerous situation for residents. The actual problem is that drivers are speeding through those residential areas, already breaking the existing limits, so reducing those limits will only be effective if there is enforcement.

Which begs the question, "Why not just enforce the current limits?"

It's a basic failure in logic. It's like the discussion, under the Miller regime, about banning handguns in Toronto. It presumes that passing a law will immediately make criminals behave themselves, as non law breakers aren't the problem. There is a huge problem with politicians these days; they pass laws so that they can make the electorate think that they're actually doing something useful, which they aren't.
 
Rob MacLennan said:
It's a basic failure in logic. It's like the discussion, under the Miller regime, about banning handguns in Toronto. It presumes that passing a law will immediately make criminals behave themselves, as non law breakers aren't the problem. There is a huge problem with politicians these days; they pass laws so that they can make the electorate think that they're actually doing something useful, which they aren't.
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Yep... Exactly that sort of logic...
gun-free-zone.jpg
 
Rob MacLennan said:
The perceived problem is that traffic is moving too quickly, on side streets, which is a dangerous situation for residents. The actual problem is that drivers are speeding through those residential areas, already breaking the existing limits, so reducing those limits will only be effective if there is enforcement.

Which begs the question, "Why not just enforce the current limits?"

It's a basic failure in logic. It's like the discussion, under the Miller regime, about banning handguns in Toronto. It presumes that passing a law will immediately make criminals behave themselves, as non law breakers aren't the problem. There is a huge problem with politicians these days; they pass laws so that they can make the electorate think that they're actually doing something useful, which they aren't.
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Agree with you Rob. They find the easy way out
 
Need to do a daily group ride around the first neighbourhood that does this at 30 kph, until they see the light.

My experience is that the neighbourhood thinks it's for outsiders and not for them.
 
Baggsy said:
Need to do a daily group ride around the first neighbourhood that does this at 30 kph, until they see the light.

My experience is that the neighbourhood thinks it's for outsiders and not for them.
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exactly. In my NIMBY neighborhood, they put a major road from 50km to 40km speed limit. I constantly see the locals doing at least 60km on that road going to their houses. I know from the local paper/community newsletter it was the locals there that asked for the speed limit to be reduced.
 
It isn't about speed, it is about trying to replenish the coffins... I wonder what the limit for people is until they get ****** off with this ridiculous council? Is it 10km/hr, is it 5? 2?... Because to me 30 km/hr is just ridiculous.
 
If they truly want to have safe residential neighbourhoods they should mandate driving around while constantly tooting the horn.......like trains do.....all ****ing night near where I am.
 
I'd be okay with all of this as long as the 400 series highways were 120 and speed limits on rural backroads were 100 instead of 80.

But no, soon we're going to have to be pushing our cars just to get around without getting tickets.
 
Eventually.... the paradigm shift will happen from cars everywhere in Toronto to transit, bicycles and pedestrians. Toronto just doesn't have the cash, or ability to plan right now.. and I say we still haven't hit that tipping-point critical mass of population. One day. Speed reduction to 30kph is just 1 step in that direction.

Unfortunately in North America the motor vehicle is such an integral component to daily life and an individuals identity.. So much resistance.
 
h0ck3y said:
FYI -- "starting today, speed limits on 387 kilometres of local city roads will be reduced to 30 km/hr...."

http://www.metronews.ca/news/toronto/2015/09/14/speed-limits-on-toronto-streets-reduced.html
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Yes that is the headline, but reality is it hasn't started on 387 km of roads, UNLESS they were out last night changing a crap load of signs. Doesn't matter what the new regulations states the speed limit is, the road has to properly signed with the proper speed limit before enforcement can begin
 
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