Perhaps Victoria city council shouldn鈥檛 have been in such a hurry to slow down. In 2013, Victoria Coun. Ben Isitt and former councillor Shellie Gudgeon tried unsuccessfully to get the Union of sa国际传媒 Municipalities to adopt a resolution asking the province to make 40 kilometres an hour the default speed limit in urban areas.
Isitt and Gudgeon had better luck back home in Victoria. In 2014, councillors voted unanimously to lower speed limits on several streets, mostly to 40 km/h from 50 km/h. Richmond Road, Quadra Street, Gorge Road, parts of Bay and Cook streets and several downtown streets were among those affected.
sa国际传媒 Transit says the lower speed limit on arteries has created problems, and anecdotal information from police officers indicates that the lower speed limit is creating congestion 鈥� and sometimes road rage 鈥� on some streets.
James Wadsworth, senior transit planner for sa国际传媒 Transit, said buses are moving more slowly throughout the region and having trouble keeping to their schedules. The result is a loss of about 30 bus trips per day from a total of 3,000, a reduction in service of about one per cent.
鈥淲e are moving slower on some routes, so we are doing less trips,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd the buses are getting more crowded because at the same time, we have ridership growing.鈥�
The sa国际传媒 Motor Vehicle Act stipulates a speed limit of 50 km/h within municipalities and 80 km/h outside municipalities unless otherwise posted. It wouldn鈥檛 hurt to lower the urban speed limit to 40 km/h. That鈥檚 plenty fast for neighbourhoods where there are narrow streets, parking on both sides and children playing; provincial health officer Dr. Perry Kendall has even urged the province to make it 30 km/h.
鈥淲e鈥檝e sent a very clear, unanimous message to the engineering department and to our staff that we鈥檙e moving toward creating livable urban neighbourhoods and villages,鈥� Gudgeon said when the council voted in 2014 to lower speeds on certain streets.
But that livability isn鈥檛 enhanced if buses are late or need to be cancelled. It鈥檚 not good for a neighbourhood to be afflicted by the exhaust fumes from cars stuck in traffic.
It鈥檚 better for all for traffic to move through an area as expeditiously as possible. There鈥檚 an optimum speed to do that, and it鈥檚 not necessarily a slower speed.
Mayor Lisa Helps says she is willing to meet sa国际传媒 Transit officials to discuss the issue.
鈥淚f there are some serious impacts to transit travel, then yes, we need to look at the speed limits,鈥� she said.
That examination should go beyond transit issues. The lower limit is irrelevant in the downtown core, because signals at every intersection and the volume of traffic keep speeds down.
But the city should ensure traffic is moving efficiently along arteries such as Richmond Road, Quadra Street and Gorge Road. A speed limit of 50 km/h is reasonable for those streets.
