Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
After resident testimony, commissioners order speed‑warning signs, expand traffic study and seek patrol support on Scottsway/Waverly
Loading...
Summary
Following neighbor testimony about nearly 3,700 vehicles in a 48‑hour count and frequent high speeds, Augusta’s engineering and public safety teams were directed to install speed‑warning indicators and no‑through‑traffic signage on Scottsway, prepare an expanded traffic study, and coordinate increased patrols with the sheriff.
Residents and commissioners pressed the engineering committee on April 28 to act on a neighborhood traffic safety problem on Scottsway in the Waverly subdivision.
"I was in the road with my 7 year old," resident Trey Crabill told the commission, describing a study that recorded about 3,700 cars in a 48‑hour sample and numerous near misses. Crabill urged immediate calming measures: "The easiest thing is and the most sensible thing is speed humps."
Engineering director Dr. Malik explained the professional traffic‑study thresholds and interim options: digital speed‑indicator signs, rumble strips, warning signage and, where policy thresholds are met, speed humps. "If stop sign is not stopping or slowing it down, I don't know what else is gonna slow them down," Malik said, and offered short‑term signage and rumble strip options while recommending a policy review before broad speed‑hump deployment.
Sheriff David Reed said law enforcement can act on reckless driving, DUI or other clear violations and will respond to complaints, but noted staffing and jurisdictional limits: "If it's on county property, then, yes, we can enforce ... but on private property ... we don't have the right or the authority to go on anybody's property and regulate their property unless they call and say..."
Commissioner Guilfoyle moved—and the commission unanimously approved—a package directing engineering to install a speed‑warning indicator, add no‑through‑traffic signage, pursue targeted rumble/striping where appropriate, provide commissioners with the existing speed‑hump policy, and run an expanded traffic analysis (longer than the 48‑hour sample) to better isolate through‑traffic. Commissioners also asked the sheriff to increase patrols as staffing permits and asked engineering for cost and timing estimates; staff said warning signage could take a few weeks and digital signs several months to procure.
Why it matters: residents described frequent high speeds and children playing in the street; commissioners framed the motion as an interim, localized response while exploring policy changes to reduce the number of neighborhoods that fail current speed‑hump thresholds.
Next steps: engineering will install short‑term warning signs and pursue a longer traffic study; the sheriff’s office will prioritize patrols for complaint responses; staff will return with a policy memo and cost estimates for permanent calming devices.
