A group of residents near South Country Club Drive tried to lower the speed limit on a section of the road, but the request was denied at a commission meeting Wednesday morning.
At the Transportation and Traffic Commission meeting, a group of residents of the Georgetown subdivision showed up in support of a request to lower the speed limit on South Country Club Drive, between Missouri Boulevard and West Edgewood, from 40 miles per hour to 30 miles per hour, as an alternate solution to a problem they've been calling attention to throughout the year.
Residents of the Georgetown subdivision have attended meetings of the Public Works and Planning Committee since March, saying heavy truck traffic on South Country Club Drive is causing structural issues to both the road and their homes. At a committee meeting in April, city staff said two possible solutions would be diamond grinding of the road, which would correct surface imperfections on the roadway and cost an estimated $35,000, or a mill and overlay of the pavement, which would cost an estimated $215,000. Both potential solutions are not in the current budget, and city staff have said the issue comes down to funding and when it would be available.
City staff conducted traffic studies of the area in March. Tia Griffin, an engineer with the city, said 85 percent of those using South Country Club Drive were going less than 40 miles per hour and staff was not in favor of lowering the speed limit.
Operations Division Director Britt Smith said even if the speed limit was lowered, it likely would not have too great an effect on many drivers. He said studies have shown drivers tend to go the speed they are comfortable with and feel safe at, and different signs don't affect that behavior.
The request was denied after four commissioners voted against lowering the speed limit, three voted in favor and two abstained.
The commission also denied a request to extend the no parking on the west side of Hobbs Road and a request to prohibit left turns from Franklin Street onto Lafayette Street.