Speed limits on Bainbridge Island streets set to drop this year
BAINBRIDGE ISLAND – Speed limits on a number of streets across the island will drop in the coming months.
Speed limits on a chunk of Bainbridge Island's secondary arterial and collector roads that are currently posted at 35 mph will drop to 30 mph and limits on most local access streets, including those with no posted speed limit, will drop to 20 mph. The changes mean that drivers will be required to slow down on sections of streets like Madison Avenue, Miller Road, Koura Road, Sportsman Club Road and Fletcher Bay Road.
Members of Bainbridge Island City Council voted 7-0 in favor of the plan on Tuesday night.
City spokeswoman Shannon Hays said in an email to the Kitsap Sun that the city brought on consultant Transpo Group, based in Kirkland, in late 2021 to evaluate speed limit options on the island following a neighborhood traffic calming open house in the summer that year. “We heard from many residents that they wanted speed limits to be looked into for consistency and possibly lowering some limits in addition to exploring traffic calming facilities,” she said.
“The purpose of the evaluation was to investigate the potential for developing a comprehensive set of speed limit changes that would lower overall speed limits while also supporting consistency and safety across the island and limit the need for case-by-case speed limit reviews,” she added. “This speed limit study was particularly sensitive to all modes of transportation to better align with the sustainable transportation efforts that were simultaneously occurring.”
Hays said that the changes will go into effect in phases in 2023.
Police chief Joe Clark told council members on Tuesday night that two weeks ahead of a speed limit change, officers will be present, particularly during peak travel times, enforcing the existing speed limit.
“We’ll also take that opportunity to hand out fliers, notify what those particular segments are changing to, to enhance that advance notice piece,” he said. “Following the signage changes, we’ll continue those same emphasis patrols. During this period, we’ll continue to distribute information cards. We’re going to primarily utilize warnings during this 30-day period because of the new change.”
Clark said the department will also use small radar devices to collect speeding data on the island.
“We want to better identify those locations on island as a whole that are sections where there could be higher rates of speeding, that we could better direct our resources more efficiently to target those areas and potentially higher crash locations,” he said.
Said city manager Blair King in a statement provided to the Kitsap Sun: “With these new speed limits, we are seeking to standardize speeds within established corridors. Over time, different speeds have been set within the same corridor in close proximity to each other. During the data gathering process, we looked at speed limits through a multi-modal lens that factored in safety and best practices for non-motorized traffic like bikers and walkers to align with the Sustainable Transportation Plan. This helped guide the recommendations to the City Council.”
Maps identifying the locations where speed limits are changing can be found on the city's website at bainbridgewa.gov/1415/Islandwide-Speed-Limit-Study.
This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Speed limits on Bainbridge Island set to drop this year
