Speed limits within the city of Highland Village have presented an issue.
The Highland Village City Council discussed speed limits within the city during their latest meeting on March 28. The city council was given presentations about occurrences concerning speed by both Public Works Director Scott Kriston and Highland Village police Chief Doug Reim, according to Community Impact.
Reim presented city data on car crashes, while Kriston presented data regarding speed limits on certain streets and traffic counts.
Currently, Texas already has standards for speed limits based on the road classification. Streets are limited to 30 miles per hour, alleys to 15, highways between 65 and 70, and highways outside the urban district have a limit between 55 and 60.
Reim’s presented data showed that the city had had 92 crashes in the past three years, with 11 of them resulting in an injury.
Kriston reported that data shows most citizens are not speeding and driving at or below posted speed limits on residential streets.
Some council members favor lowering the speed limits on some streets.
Council Member Tom Heslep is one such member who was unsatisfied that action has yet to take place. Heslep noted action options such as increased enforcement and lowering limits in certain areas.
“We need to do something, and we’ve been talking about this since I’ve been on council,” said Heslep, according to Community Impact.
Mayor Daniel Jaworski concurred with stricter enforcement, noting that this method can be taken if the council wants to keep the same limits.
The notion of lowering the speed limit within the city has limitations itself.
“The only instance in which a city may lower a speed limit without a traffic study, to as low as 25 miles per hour, is if the road is in an urban district, is less than four lanes, and is not a state highway,” said Reim in a presentation on speed in Highland Village.
Council Member Jon Kixmiller said there had yet to be an initiative to make such changes because there is no consensus from citizens on the prospect of lowering limits or amongst the council regarding solutions.
Kixmiller also said, “other safety measures could be taken and city officials could look at areas individually.”
The Texas Department of Transportation reported that the state has seen a rise in fatalities associated with car crashes.
“The 2021 death toll of 4,489 was an increase of 15.22% from the 3,896 deaths recorded in 2020,” said the department in a fact sheet of data from 2021.
The department also reported that one person was injured every two minutes and 12 seconds and that one crash occurred every 57 seconds.