Meaford council has approved a recommendation in its Transportation Master Plan to consider reducing the default speed limit to 40 km/h within urban areas of the municipality.
In a 5-2 vote, council passed a motion to draft a bylaw implementing a 40 km/h speed limit on all municipal roads in urban Meaford and Grey Road 7, from Sykes Street to Muir Street.
“If this is an initiative that can make our roads safer and if it can even save one life,” says Coun. Brandon Forder. “I would just hate for there to be an instance where we had a opportunity to make our roads safer by reducing the speed and then there was a tragic event and we has to live with it.”
While developing the plan, staff consulted with the Ontario Ministry of Transportation, Grey County and the Ontario Provincial Police to determine the potential impacts of the change.
According to the Global Street Design Guide, transitioning from 50 km/h to 40 km/h reduces the risk of pedestrian death by 35%. Meanwhile, research by the Canadian Association of Road Safety Professionals demonstrates that a 10% reduction in average speed can result in a 40% decrease in fatal crashes.
The estimated cost to implement the program, including signage and a communications plan, is $40,500.