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City staff: speed limit reduction on 116th Ave SE produced limited change; radar signs and striping coming
Summary
Public works staff told the council that the 2025 speed and volume study on 116th Avenue SE showed only minimal reductions after a 30→25 mph limit change. Staff installed radar speed signs near the elementary school and plan wider edge stripe painting this year; longer-term physical calming or enforcement was discussed.
Newcastle — City public works staff told the City Council on June 17 that follow-up speed and volume studies on 116th Avenue Southeast found only minor speed reductions since the council reduced the posted limit from 30 to 25 mph in 2024.
Director Bruns (public works) summarized traffic counts taken in February 2025 and compared them to 2024 data collected before the posted speed reduction. Average speeds were largely unchanged or decreased by about one mile per hour in most segments; the segment in front of the elementary school retained the highest speeds, with 85th-percentile speeds near 37 mph, Bruns said.
Staff actions and near-term measures - Two radar speed signs have been installed on the high-volume segment near the elementary school (one in each direction). Installation had been delayed by supply-chain issues but is now complete. - The city plans to repaint wider edge stripes (8-inch fog stripes) this year to give the visual impression of narrower travel lanes, a low-cost traffic-calming measure; that work had been delayed previously because of coordination with King County striping contractors.
Longer-term options and council discussion Director Bruns said the next routine traffic study will be in February 2026 and expected similar modest changes from striping and signage, perhaps another one-mile-per-hour reduction. Councilmembers and staff also discussed enforcement (motorized enforcement and targeted patrols) and physical roadway changes (speed humps, chicanes, mini-roundabouts) as measures that could produce larger speed reductions. Councilmember questions noted that targeted enforcement during school arrival times has visibly decreased speeds in those periods.
No formal action was taken; staff will monitor traffic and return with updated data after the stripe work and continued enforcement.
