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State highway administration backs bill to allow 5 mph urban speed reductions without study
Summary
House Bill 780 would permit the State Highway Administration to lower speed limits on qualifying urban state highways by up to 5 mph without conducting a formal traffic or engineering study, a change SHA officials said would speed safety improvements.
House Bill 780 authorizes the Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA) to reduce posted speed limits on designated urban state highways by up to 5 miles per hour without first completing a formal traffic or engineering study.
Sponsor Delegate Ken Kerr told the Environment and Transportation Committee the change is intended to give SHA the ability to respond more quickly to requests for speed reductions where roadway conditions and safety practices indicate a lower limit is appropriate. "You heard this bill last year so let me just briefly remind you of what it does… Speed kills, unfortunately, plain and simple on our roadways," Kerr said.
Joe McAndrew, Assistant Secretary for Project Development and Delivery at the Maryland Department of Transportation, testified for SHA and said the study requirement can take months and cost several thousand dollars; removing it for modest 5 mph reductions would let SHA apply best practices more quickly to urban corridors where most pedestrian fatalities occur. "We can only reduce the speed by up to 5 miles an hour, but that 5 miles an hour can be really important, in terms of somebody's ability to walk away, if they were to be hit," McAndrew said.
SHA officials said larger reductions (more than 5 mph) would still require a formal study and public outreach; under HB 780, the agency would still coordinate with local officials before changing limits. Committee members raised questions about whether a single 5 mph reduction would be sufficient in some locations or whether repeated reductions should be allowed; SHA staff said the bill allows the one‑time administrative adjustment and that formal studies could follow if greater reductions are needed.
The committee did not vote on HB 780 during the Feb. 13 hearing; SHA and sponsors said they would continue to refine implementation details and local engagement processes.
