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Dawson County staff recommend wide speed-zone changes; resolution to be sent to GDOT
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Summary
Public works staff presented engineering-backed recommendations to change speed limits on multiple local roads and two stretches of State Route 53, and asked the board to approve a resolution to submit the changes to the Georgia Department of Transportation for approval.
Public Works Director Robert Drewy urged the Dawson County Board of Commissioners on Thursday to approve engineering-recommended updates to multiple speed zones and send a resolution to the Georgia Department of Transportation for review.
The study, performed by consultant KCI Technologies, used traffic volumes, site distances, pedestrian and bicycle activity, pavement condition and a 10-year crash history to recommend specific changes. Drewy told the board the study breaks some roads into segments and recommends lower limits where development and residential uses have increased.
"So that's the speed zones we're recommending for approval," Robert Drewy, public works director, said, summarizing the consultant's proposals. Among Drewy's highlights: Carlisle Road would be split into a 30-mph residential segment and a 35-mph segment to State Route 400; Freeland Road, currently unposted, was recommended at 35 mph; Goodson Road would remain at 35 mph; Henry Grady Road was recommended to drop from 55 to 45 mph; and multiple adjustments were proposed along State Route 53 to taper higher speeds down to 45 and 35 as drivers approach residential areas and the town center. Drewy also recommended extending the school zone at Riverview Elementary and posting it at 30 mph.
The board heard that some state routes require additional local DOT review before the county formally submits the engineering package, and that GDOT approval is needed to enable speed-radar enforcement. Drewy explained that an engineering study is required under the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices before local radar enforcement can be used.
Why it matters: adopting the resolution would begin a state review that can lead to enforceable speed limits and radar enforcement in areas identified as higher risk to pedestrians and residents. The proposed changes aim to slow traffic in growing residential corridors and around a school.
Next steps: staff placed a resolution before the board and said, if the board approves the resolution, the county will submit the required supporting engineering materials to GDOT for final approval and to enable radar enforcement where allowed. No formal board vote on the resolution was recorded at the work session.
