Portland has implemented one of the most sweeping commitments to traffic safety of any city in the United States: 20 mph speed limits over the vast majority of the city's streets.
"To improve traffic safety and make streets more welcoming for walking and biking, Portland will lower speed limits on nearly all of its residential streets to 20 miles per hour, in most cases replacing a 25 mph limit," reports Angie Schmitt.
According to Schmitt, the 70 percent of the city's collected miles of streets will now be subject to the 20 mph speed limit. Portland, like many other cities around the country, needed permission from the State legislature to lower its speed limits. Once it had that permission, the Portland City Council approved the lower speed limits unanimously.
The action by the Portland City Council is perhaps the most sweeping of any similar efforts around the country, though Portland is not the first city in the country or in the world to lower speed limits in the name of traffic safety. For more background on the movement, here is a list of articles on the subject:
FULL STORY: Portland Will Reduce Residential Speed Limits to 20 MPH
'20 Is Plenty' in the Twin Cities
The first 20 mile per hour speed limit signs have been installed this week in the Twin Cities.
Latest to Say '20 Is Plenty': Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk joins several other cities in smoothing the way for 20 MPH speed limits on neighborhood streets to promote its Vision Zero goals.
Portland Completes Massive 20 MPH Speed Limit Overhaul
All of Portland's 3,000 miles of residential streets now have a maximum speed of 20 miles per hour. Similar changes could be coming to more Oregon cities in the future.
New York Governor Advances Housing Plan Amid Stiff Suburban Opposition
Governor Kathy Hochul’s ambitious proposal to create more housing has once again run into a brick wall of opposition in New York’s enormous suburbs, especially on Long Island. This year, however, the wall may have some cracks.
A Serious Critique of Congestion Costs and Induced Vehicle Travel Impacts
Some highway advocates continue to claim that roadway expansions are justified to reduce traffic congestion. That's not what the research shows. It's time to stop obsessing over congestion and instead strive for efficient accessibility.
Rethinking the Role of Parking in the American City
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Long Beach Residents Oppose Proposed Homeless Services Hub Near Rail Terminus
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The Nation's Most Advanced Secessionist Movement
Legislation supporting the Greater Idaho Movement, which would annex over half of neighboring Oregon, has advanced in the Idaho legislature.
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