Councillors have voted in favour to reduce Edmonton’s default speed limit to 40 km/h—a move that would mostly impact residential roads.
It was a long Tuesday at city hall with back and forth between convenience for drivers and safety for pedestrians, but in the end, councillors voted 10-3 to support lower neighbourhood speed limits.
“People do not need to drive 50 kilometres on a local residential road nowhere in Edmonton,” Ward 10 Councillor Michael Walters said.
Ward 1 Councillor Andrew Knack—who introduced the motion in April 2018—said he is aware the reduction will not help with traffic, but Ward 6 Councillor Scott McKeen believes commutes “should be impacted very little.”
In a closer 7-6 count, councillors voted in favour to reduce the speed limit in central Edmonton residential roads to 30 km/h.
“Yeah, we’re going to get some pushback, obviously,” Ward 11 Councillor Mike Nickel said.
City staff will now draft bylaws that will go to a public hearing in January 2020, and then councillors will vote on those bylaws before speed limits are officially changed.
With files from CTV Edmonton’s Jeremy Thompson
