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County asks DOT to correct speed signage after Lake Moxie/Bixie study
Summary
A county review of a DOT speed study found a locally posted 30 mph sign is not in DOT's database; DOT recommended replacing it with a village-area sign and posting the statutory default (45 mph) where no valid limit exists, and commissioners asked staff to pursue signage corrections and a possible 40-mph compromise.
County road and highway staff reviewed an MDOA/DOT speed study for Lake Moxie/Bixie Road and recommended removing a locally posted 30 mph sign that DOT does not recognize, replacing it with a village-area sign, and posting the state statutory default where a limit is not in DOT's database.
The department representative said his notes show the corridor is legally 45 mph unless the DOT posts a lower limit; DOT will not maintain a town'posted limit unless it appears in their database. He suggested replacing the incorrect 30-mph sign with a village-area sign and recommended additional 45-mph markers along stretches of the road. Commissioners asked whether DOT could be persuaded to set a 40-mph limit; the staffer said DOT would probably not object to 40 in some spots but did not anticipate a 25-mph designation unless homes are less than 150 feet apart, the statutory test for a residential 25-mph zone.
"If a town puts a sign up that says 25 and it's not in DOT's database, it's not valid," one official said, noting an unenforceable local sign can create confusion and place deputies in a precarious enforcement position.
The commission asked staff to contact DOT (a DOT contact, Dick Steel, was suggested) to explain historical sign placement and to pursue DOT's recommendation: remove the invalid 30-mph posts, install a village-area sign and add clear speed limit markers where appropriate. No formal vote was required; staff will coordinate and report back.
