Decatur is designating 16 more streets, or portions of streets as a “Residential District Speed Zone,” meaning drivers can get ticketed for exceeding the speed limit by one mile per hour.
Mostly law enforcement can’t write a ticket unless a vehicle’s 11 mph over. The two exceptions are school zones and a legally-created RDSZ.
Primary criteria for becoming a RDSZ is that the road is signed for less than 35 mph and that it meets a definition created by the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials. This includes roads offering “the lowest level of mobility and usually contains no bus routes and service to through-traffic movements usually is deliberately discouraged.”
A complete list of streets becoming eligible is here: decatur.civicweb.net/document/2368.
It’s anticipated that signs will go up next month, after which motorists get 30-day grace period before enforcement.
“For us it makes sense because we are a dense urban residential city,” said Assistant City Manager David Junger. “[The RDSZ] is a way of letting people know you are interacting with pedestrians, cyclists and runners and you’ve got to go the posted speed limit.”
There are now 42 Residential District Speed Zones total in Decatur.
For a complete list go to: decatur.civicweb.net/document/2371.
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