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Riverton council reopens debate on 2018 speed-hump ban; asks transportation committee for study
Summary
Council members debated whether to restore pre-2018 neighborhood speed humps or allow new installations, citing resident demand, emergency-vehicle impacts, noise and uncertainty in how overlays were handled. Staff will ask the transportation committee and public works to produce options, costs and design alternatives (including cutouts) for council consideration.
The Riverton City Council spent substantial time revisiting a 2018 ordinance that halted new permanent speed-hump installations. Kevin, a city staff member, reviewed the ordinance language and told the council the text required an inventory of existing humps and that humps installed after Oct. 1, 2018, should not be installed. He said the rule's interpretation is ambiguous when resurfacing or overlays occurred after 2018 and noted the public-works director and prior staff had different understandings of whether pre-2018 features should have been reinstated after overlays.
Council members described a mix of resident sentiment: some neighborhoods mourn the loss of humps and want them restored, while others complain about noise, vehicle wear and snowplow impacts. The public-works director said local practice differs by city and that "no other city around here allows it," adding that improperly installed devices can cause noise and increased wear. The UFA liaison said the devices "do exactly what it's designed to do" by slowing emergency vehicles and cautioned any impact on apparatus depends on vehicle speed and design.
Several council members pushed for more data and recommended the transportation committee study options and costs. Council member Perucci argued the city is "short changing ourselves when we just completely eliminate that tool" and advocated restoring the option through a formal process and committee review. Council member Broker suggested exploring humps with axle cutouts so larger emergency vehicles could traverse without the same suspension impacts, a design the transportation committee said it had discussed preparing for.
The council asked staff and the transportation committee to inventory removed humps, estimate replacement costs, evaluate designs (including cutouts and removable devices), and return with a clear policy recommendation rather than making ordinance changes tonight.
