Streamlined Speed Limits Sought For Swampscott's Humphrey Street

SWAMPSCOTT, MA — A universal speed limit is being put in place along Humphrey Street in Swampscott as the Select Board and town administration looks to address continued pedestrian safety concerns in town.

The Select Board voted at its last meeting to support the Traffic Committee's proposal to implement a 25 mph speed limit from the Lynn line to the Atlantic Avenue split. It was argued that the fluctuating speed limit between 20 and 30 mph was outdated, largely unenforceable and presented more confusion than safety promotion.

"The main point is that there are too many varying speed limits and unposted areas — which are 25 (mph) by town ordinance," Swampscott Fire Chief Graham Archer said. "They vary a lot. They are old signs that just happen to be there. Some of them are kind of inexplicable. The 20 mph sign just pops up out of nowhere.

"There are just too many different guidance," Archer added. "Different speeds and different directions. It is all over the place."

The talk of the proposal spurred a larger conversation about pedestrian safety in the town.

Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald said there are plans to replace the temporary speed bumps that were put in place on Pine Street in the fall and removed for winter snow removal with permanent traffic-calming devices as part of a larger capital plan to address speeding in the town.

"The most significant danger that we face in Swampscott is traffic safety, pedestrian safety," Fitzgerald said. "We're in a densely settled town. Every one of the intersections is in need of investment."

Fitzgerald said that traffic patrols should include more citations — "At some point too many warnings do not do the trick," he said. — and that measures should be taken "that will make it more challenging for people to drive fast through the town."

"Pedestrian safety has to be a priority," he said. "It will be a priority in the capital plan. It will be one of the most significant projects that I will be recommending.

"I feel down to my toes it is the most clear and present danger to the welfare and safety of the citizens of Swampscott."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)