Township adopts no‑right‑on‑red at Horsham/Stump and reviews traffic‑calming policy

Montgomery Township moved this month to tighten traffic enforcement at a crash‑prone intersection and to create clearer procedures for future traffic‑calming requests.

Police Chief Bill Peoples presented a proposed amendment to township ordinance 11‑222 (described in board materials) that would prohibit right turns on red at the Horsham Road approaches to Stump Road. Chief Peoples said the change follows PennDOT guidance and explained that during the Jan. 19–Jan. 28 warning period the department processed 182 violations. After brief public comment and questions about signage and the 30‑day warning phase, the board adopted ordinance 26‑356 to make the prohibition permanent at the specified approaches.

Separately, Chief Peoples described a draft traffic‑calming policy the public safety committee had reviewed and endorsed. The draft, developed using PennDOT’s contextual roadway guidance and examples from neighboring jurisdictions, establishes an application route, a highway safety unit review, metrics for eligibility (traffic volume, crash history), and a neighborhood approval threshold (60% in the mapped area) before measures move forward. If adopted, the process would allow a petitioner to skip a full re‑study within three years if prior study elements remain valid.

The board did not adopt the traffic‑calming policy at the meeting; staff said the draft will be returned for formal adoption after any suggested edits and further public input. Chief Peoples said the policy is intended to make decision‑making consistent and to document why the township will or will not install traffic‑calming measures in given locations.

Quote: Police Chief Bill Peoples said, "...we've had a total of a 182 violations" processed from Jan. 19–Jan. 28 and explained the 30‑day warning phase before issuing citations.

The board asked staff to return the policy for formal adoption once it has been refined and community input incorporated.