Lowering Worcester Speed Limit To 25 MPH: Councilors Want To Do Survey First

WORCESTER, MA — A Worcester City Council committee that's in charge of making a recommendation on a plan to lower speed limits citywide wants to wait for the results of a survey before making a final decision.

The Standing Committee on Traffic and Parking chaired by At-Large Councilor Donna Colorio has held a series of public hearings about reducing speed limits over the last several months, but the meetings have attracted scant attention: only 27 people have spoken at the meetings held in each of the five city council districts, according to the city clerk's office.

The plan to lower speed limits was first sent to the city council in December by Department of Transportation and Mobility Commissioner Steve Rolle. The plan calls for lowering the citywide limit from 30 to 25 mph — except on some select main arteries, and state roads — and establishing "safety zones" with 20 mph speed limits outside sensitive facilities like daycare centers, colleges and playgrounds.

Speeding has been a longstanding problem in Worcester, especially along narrowe streets in dense neighborhoods on the east side. According to MassDOT data, 91 people have been killed and 872 seriously injured in traffic crashes and collisions in Worcester over the last decade. Lowering speed limits, officials say, will help save lives.

"In urban environments where pedestrians and bicyclists are present, higher speeds are directly and exponentially linked to an increased risk of severe injuries and deaths," Rolle wrote in a memo to councilors. "Lowering statutory speed limits to 25 mph has shown to be effective at reducing speeding — particularly excessive speeding — which will have a positive effect on the safety and access of all roadway users, and vulnerable roadway users in particular."

The traffic and parking committee began its series of hearings on Jan. 31 in District 1, where four out of five speakers supported lowering speed limits (one speaker did not take a position). In District 2 on Feb. 8, all five speakers were in favor, and in District 3 on Feb. 22, one person spoke against. The District 5 meeting on March 27 had the highest number of speakers and the most division on the idea: out of 13, four spoke in favor, six spoke against and three did not take a position.

At the meeting held on April 25 in District 4, the only two speakers were in favor of the speed limit reduction. Maritza Cruz, co-chair of the Main South Beacon Brightly Neighborhood Association, said she once witnessed a motorcyclist killed by a speeding car along Benefit Street.

"We’ve been asking for the past 15, 20 years for this to happen," she said. "I am really happy to see it’s going to be implemented citywide."

After public comment at the April 25 meeting, Colorio moved to hold the plan pending a survey conducted by the city gauging interest in lowering speed limits. After the survey runs for between 30 and 45 days online, the traffic and parking committee would make its recommendation to the full council. The traffic and parking committee includes Colorio and At-Large Councilors Khrystian King and Thu Nguyen, who was absent on April 25.

The council could vote as soon as Tuesday to ask the city manager to implement the survey. If the survey is open for 30 days, the traffic and parking committee wouldn't see the results until early June. The full city council — which would ultimately have to vote to approve the plan — is only scheduled to meet four times between June and August, and one of those meetings will be devoted to council's review of the city manager.

Assistant Director of Transportation and Mobility Todd Kirrane has told councilors that, if approved, it could take up to six months to install signs alerting drivers about the new speed limits. That work could be delayed even further due to winter weather, he said.

Colorio said Thursday she wants to go the extra mile with a survey so residents at least know there's a plan brewing to lower speed limits. She pointed to the recent backlash against the rental registry — approved by councilors with little fanfare in 2022 — as a main reason why the idea needs more input.

Colorio said only about 40 people total attended all five hearings, hardly a representation of the city's 205,000 residents. Colorio said she would want to limit the survey to perhaps as short as 30 days, and will ask her colleagues on council to promote the survey wherever they can in the community.

The traffic and parking committee piloted a speed hump program in recent years. When it succeeded, the committee recommended making it permanent, Colorio said, as an example of a successful public process. She said Thursday she doesn't know if she'll vote for or against lowering speed limits once the plan hits the council floor.

"I really want one more shot at this," she said. "Then I will feel totally confident we’ve done our job as elected officials."

Want to know more about the speed limit plan? View the city's PowerPoint presentation here.