Should it be Lowered?
Chicago is considering limiting their speed limit to 25 mph. Moreover, several transportation experts and many towns have witnessed a decrease in fatal car crashes after decreasing the default to 25 mph. The City Council committee’s goal on Wednesday was intended to reduce the default speed limit in Chicago from 30 to 25 mph.
City leaders stated on Wednesday that reducing the default speed limit in Chicago from 30 mph to 25 mph could spare hundreds of lives from traffic crashes each year. Additionally, they clarified that the policy would not aim to intimidate drivers with additional penalties.
Since 2014, Chicago has upheld a 30-mph default speed limit in residential and business zones. In response to this the global campaign known as Vision Zero aims to eradicate traffic fatalities and serious injuries. Reducing speed limits, according to supporters, improves road safety by giving drivers more time to respond to possible hazards and lessens the severity of accidents.
Safer Streets
A statement from CDOT deputy commissioner Vignesh Krishnamurthy, there were 134 fatal traffic crashes in Chicago last year, which is less than in previous years but still higher than pre-pandemic levels. According to Krishnamurthy, the death rate from traffic crashes among Black Chicagoans and older people is far greater than that of other locals.
During a subject matter hearing on whether Chicago should follow other large cities that have lowered speed limitations to deal with a spike in traffic deaths nationwide over the last ten years, Ald. Daniel La Spata (1st), chairman of the City Council’s Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety, accelerated the conversation.
Audrey Wennink reported, several cities, including New York, Seattle, San Francisco, and Boston, have dropped their default speed limitation to 25 mph. According to New York’s transit officials, the initiative resulted in the city’s lowest level of pedestrian fatalities in a century and a 23 percent annual reduction in pedestrian deaths.
Proponents stated that it is the duty of city officials to lower the number of traffic-related fatalities and serious injuries.
Advocating For Change
The purpose of the meeting on Wednesday was to have a subject matter hearing to begin the conversation. However, La Spata stated that he intends to propose legislation that would reduce the default speed to 25 mph.
Everyone in this room knows someone who has lost a loved one to road violence in the city, according to La Spata. “Laws start the conversation, but they don’t save lives.”
When a car travels at 20 mph as opposed to 30 mph, the odds of survival for those involved in crashes increase from 60% to 90%, according to Wennink.
“He also noted that traffic behavior resembles other social behaviors: When everyone slows down a bit and models the desired way of using our streets, it nudges us closer to the direction we aim to move.”
The Cost
If the city of Chicago approves a new speed limit restriction ordinance, 10,000 speed limit signs will need to be replaced. Additionally, according to Iris Postma, chief of staff for the council’s Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety, an estimate of the cost has not yet been provided.
Alds. Derrick Curtis (18th) and David Moore (17th) expressed worry over the potential costs of the new speed signs. Curtis continued by stating that to effectively compel Chicago drivers to slow down, they would need more severe obstacles, such as traffic cops and red-light cameras. Drivers can receive citations from the city’s traffic camera system for exceeding the speed limit by as little as 6 mph. Aldermen who claimed that tickets disproportionately affected citizens of color attempted to raise the speeding threshold. During the administration of Mayor Lori Lightfoot, aldermen resisted the attempt.
The Path to Safer Streets
According to Comptroller Chasse Rehwinkel, lowering the speed limit would benefit the city “revenue neutrally.” Rehwinkel stated that the administration of Mayor Brandon Johnson has carried out a Lightfoot-era initiative. They carried it out to waive traffic debt for some low-income drivers, saving Chicagoans $35 million in the process.
Rehwinkel declared, “We’re more interested in changing behavior than in making money. The city is not intended to benefit financially from this.”
Chicago has the chance to set the standard for rethinking urban transportation systems that put safety, sustainability, and equity first by utilizing data-driven tactics and community involvement. While it’s only one step in the right direction, lowering the default speed limit is essential to creating a city where every trip is safe.
Written by Samaria Payton
Sources:
WGN Radio: Extremely Local News: Will Chicago lower the default speed limit?
Block Club Chicago: Chicago Considers Lowering Default Speed Limit To 25 MPH
Chicago Sun-Times: Cutting speed limit to 25 mph could make ‘dramatic difference’ in traffic deaths, experts tell City Council
Featured Image Courtesy of Scott 97006 Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image of Courtesy of jonbgem Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
