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Why speed kills cities: US cities are dropping urban speed limits in an effort to boost safety and lower crash rates. But the benefits of less-rapid urban mobility don’t end there

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  1. cge
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    I've actually been rather skeptical of efforts I've seen in the US to lower speed limits. Much like "sharrows" for bicycles, at least in the situations I have seen, lower speed limits often appear...

    I've actually been rather skeptical of efforts I've seen in the US to lower speed limits. Much like "sharrows" for bicycles, at least in the situations I have seen, lower speed limits often appear to be proposed as a minimal-effort initiative to give the appearance of being more pedestrian-friendly while not actually affecting drivers, to the exclusion of all other changes. In many cities, it seems unlikely that police would actually enforce the lowered speed limits, and in suburban areas, discussions around traffic and speed limits often seem to take on certain racial and conformist undertones.

    I can recall a meeting where a city transportation committee member once explained that the point of Vision Zero was to reduce pedestrian deaths to zero, and that this is what we, as a city, should focus on, arguing against improving dangerous crosswalks. The number of pedestrian injuries, or the ability to walk comfortably, was not important: thus, reducing speed limits was all that was necessary.

    2 votes