Vehicles traveling at excessive speeds on E Tugalo St. has been an ongoing concern for some time. We've seen motorcycles doing wheelies, cars and trucks in excess of 50 miles per hour, numerous curb strikes by distracted drivers (check out the black marks on the curbs by the sidewalks), all within a few feet of walkers, joggers, babies in strollers, children on bikes and roller blades, etc. It's not if, but when, someone will get hurt or killed. Letters have been written and appear regularly in the Toccoa Record and concerned citizens have spoken at City Council meetings.
The current speed limit is 35 mph. The city commissioners commissioned a traffic study, which was recently completed by a traffic engineer who determined that 85% of the traffic was traveling at an average speed of 41 mph. This means that while 6 mph over doesn't seem bad, it also means there are some vehicles traveling in excess of 50 mph to reach an average that high. With a speed limit of 35 MPH and law enforcement typically allowing a 10 MPH "grace" margin means vehicles can essentially travel 45 MPH with impunity.
East Tugalo Street being so close to downtown, having numerous homes close to the street and having sidewalks is established as "an urban and residential zone," as defined by State law. Furthermore, Georgia State Traffic Law 40-6-181(b)(1) establishes a maximum speed limit of 30 MPH for such an area.
This petition seeks to lower the current speed limit on East Tugalo Street in Toccoa, GA from 35 MPH to 30 MPH. This will allow officers to issue citations at 41 MPH (giving the "grace" margin) which coincidentally, is the average speed of vehicles according to the traffic study.
Lowering the speed limit will not only bring East Tugalo Street into compliance with Georga Law, but will hopefully reduce average speeds on the street resulting in a safer environment for everyone.
