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Resident warns of speeding on Swan Lake Avenue; council votes to ask MDOT to study lower speed limit
Summary
Resident Lee Dorsey told the council that high speeds on Swan Lake Avenue produce noise, health and safety problems; after staff said MDOT plans paving with a shoulder this year, the council approved sending a draft letter asking MDOT to consider a 40 mph limit and asked police to place a radar detail.
Lee Dorsey, an East Belfast resident, told the City Council on Feb. 4 that traffic on Swan Lake Avenue regularly exceeds the 45 mph limit, creates loud night‑time noise and endangers pedestrians and cyclists. “Traffic heading north on Swan Lake Ave accelerates up the hill…they just keep their foot on the gas,” Dorsey said, describing multiple crashes and close calls and saying her family paid “thousands of dollars” for soundproofing to sleep through night noise.
The issue prompted staff and council discussion. Public Works Director Kip said MaineDOT plans to pave the road this year and add a three‑foot shoulder intended to accommodate a bike lane; Kip said the DOT work will reach the compact line and that the shoulder should help cyclists. Council members warned that a smoother, wider surface can increase vehicle speeds and urged a parallel approach to safety.
City Manager Erin Herbig said the city will ask the police department to run a radar detail and will work with the resident to prepare a draft letter to MDOT supporting a speed‑limit review. Councilor Chris Beitley moved that the council accept the draft letter to MDOT requesting a 40 mph limit from Marsh Road to the point where the road becomes 50 mph; the motion passed 5–0.
Councilors noted that DOT will perform its own traffic study when a municipality requests a statutory speed‑limit change. The council said it will combine local data (including any radar enforcement results) with a formal request to MDOT so the agency can apply its engineering formulas. The city manager estimated the MDOT request and supporting materials will be prepared in time for summer review.
The council’s action is procedural: it sends a request to MDOT to study the posted limit. Any change in the posted speed will be determined by MDOT’s traffic analysis and official process.
