MERIDIAN, Idaho — Slower speeds are coming to a stretch of Idaho's busiest non-interstate highway: Eagle Rd.
- The miles between I-84 and State St in Eagle will see slower speed limits in spring.
- ITD is making the new signs that will alert drivers of speed changes.
- Meridian Police Dept. says they hope the slower speeds will make the roads safer.
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
Eric Kokernak and Ryan Petersen make signs for the state’s roadways and showed me around their facility.
“This is where we do screen printing,” said Kockernak.
“And then we simply take away the application tape and you’ve got a done sign,” said Petersen.
Drivers have a few more months until they can expect to see these signs on the side on Eagle Rd – between the Interstate and State St in downtown Eagle.
“The reason we’re doing this is all about safety. We wanna make sure that we’re reducing crashes. We wanna eliminate fatalities and serious injuries by doing this and so everything we’re doing it’s about safety and mobility,” said John Tomlinson, the Comm Manager for ITD.
The Idaho Transportation Department is crafting new signs for the state’s busiest non-interstate highway: Eagle Road.
Which sees 60-thousand cars everyday — a number that officials say has, “doubled since 2000.”
And soon - lower speed limits are likely to impact peak hours including weekdays from 7-9 a.m., and between 4 and 6 in the afternoon.
Electronic signs will inform drivers of the changing speed limits.
As I previously reported in August — It's about reaction time. Meridian Police Chief Tracy Basterrechea tells me he and his police squad hope lowering the speed limit by 10 miles per hour will create a safer roadway.
“Helping us avoid some of the crash that we’ve had, some of the people running red lights by slowing it down, giving them a little bit more reaction time and then of course if we do have a crash then, [with] the lower speed limits, hopefully the damage will be minimal,”
The two-year pilot program is set to start in the new year.
“Springtime is when we will start putting this whole safety package [in] and then the four mid-block left turns we’ll be closing those - and again, tentative plan,” said Tomlinson.
