Legislation Would Empower Neighborhoods to Ask For Lower Speed Limits

A proposal before state legislators would allow neighborhood associations to seek out speed limits from 20 to 15 mph if the road has no sidewalks.

Instead of going through traffic studies and federal road standards, the bill would simply have the neighborhood association ask the local government to drop the speed limit as reason enough to have officials vote on speed limit changes.

In an announcement this week, the bill's sponsors explained the legislation and its emphasis on neighborhood safety:

Public safety legislation sponsored by Assemblyman Scott Rudder to protect New Jersey children from rushed and distracted motorists racing through residential communities was released today by the Assembly Transportation, Public Works and Independent Authorities Committee.

 “Spring is here, the weather is warming up, and summer is around the corner. As children, joggers and bike-riders are spending more time outside to play and exercise, we need to be more vigilant and encourage other drivers to relax, slow down, and be careful in order to prevent a tragedy,” said Rudder, R-Burlington, Atlantic and Camden, after the three-bill package cleared the committee.

The first bill, A-3947, will allow the Department of Transportation (DOT) to set a new speed limit of 15 to 20 miles per hour on all residential access streets that do not have sidewalks if approved by a governing body at the request of a community association or a majority of the residents in a neighborhood.

“This bill is about giving authority to residents who understand the needs of their own neighborhood more so than some 500-page federal traffic standard that tries to push all neighborhoods into the same box,” said Rudder.

“In districts all over the state, there are families who live on quiet, winding streets in wooded neighborhoods that seem like the safest place in the world for kids to play – until a car comes speeding around the bend, trying to cut some time off the commute home,” he said. “Some people don’t take a moment to think about the risks, to consider that there may be kids playing in the roadway tossing a ball around or riding bikes and scooters.

“The safety of these youngsters on their own neighborhood streets is my primary concern,” Rudder continued. “I’ve heard complaints from constituents and from people outside of my district, and they are afraid somebody is going to get hurt.”

The second measure, AR-159, urges the DOT to improve design standards for traffic signs in an effort to protect children. The current design of these devices does not adequately warn unsuspecting drivers and protect the children walking on or alongside public roadways.

The final bill in the package, AR-160, promotes safe driving of vehicles making local deliveries. The DOT is urged to notify delivery companies doing business in the state of the importance of safe driving practices while making deliveries in residential neighborhoods.

 “Drivers do not set out to put children, joggers and dog-walkers at risk, but that is exactly what happens when they speed around the bend in a neighborhood. My legislation reminds them there could be a child behind every tree, around the next curve, or obscured by a delivery van,” said Rudder.

Noting 2010 data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration which shows that nearly 20 percent of children between the ages of five and nine who were killed in traffic accidents in the U.S. were pedestrians, Rudder said, “These were preventable deaths. We need to reinforce to drivers the importance of driving slowly and safely in residential communities where there is increased pedestrian traffic. If these measures help save one life, we will have been successful.”