Committee hears recommendation to lower speed limit on County S; implementation deferred to Public Works

Committee members discussed a Town of Hunter request to reduce the posted speed on a segment of County S (Musketail Road) from 55 mph to 45 mph following a speed study and community complaints.

Moderator (Speaker 2) said a speed-study camera recorded an average speed of 55 mph on the affected stretch and that the town formally requested a 45 mph limit; legally the county can reduce speed by up to 10 mph. The presenter summarized the device results and said the 80th-percentile speed was 42 mph — the metric typically used to justify posted-speed changes — and recommended lowering the limit by 10 mph.

A motion to recommend the reduction was made and seconded during the meeting. Committee discussion focused on implementation steps: signs will not be erected until the Public Works department reviews and approves the change, and members suggested repeating the speed study after new signs are installed to measure results. The presenter noted it is common to test before and after signage changes to show whether the change affected driver behavior.

The transcript does not record a formal roll-call vote on the speed change; minutes indicate the committee made a motion and second but that final administrative action and sign installation will occur through Public Works processes.

Next steps recorded in the meeting: the committee will forward the recommendation and meeting minutes to Public Works for approval and scheduling of new signage; staff and town representatives were advised to rerun the speed study after signs are in place to evaluate effectiveness.—Moderator (Speaker 2)