Support a 25 mph speed limit on the loop road that circles Echo Lake
We are exploring the possibility of reducing the speed limit on the small stretch of road that circles Echo Lake for the safety of drivers and pedestrians.
In addition to the investigation work being completed by the County, we are circulating this petition to show community support for a speed limit change. If you live on the Echo Lake loop road or use a portion of it to reach your home and you support reduction of the speed limit, we encourage you to sign this petition.
The target road is different from other roads in our community. Here are reasons for the SAFETY concerns around the Echo Lake loop:
- It is a narrow curved road with native growth on the shoulders that limit visibility for drivers.
- Many people from side streets/neighborhoods use the loop road to walk, run, bike or ride horses.
- Vehicles entering the road from driveways and the boat launch have limited visibility.
- Many deer drink at the lake then cross the roadway creating a hazard for drivers.
- Shoulders or walkways are absent requiring pedestrians to walk in the roadway.
- Mail carriers, delivery, and construction increase hazards due to limited visibility.
- Limited visibility makes it dangerous for walkers and bicyclists and the drivers who try to navigate around them.
- Other solutions could be prohibitively expensive for the community to implement.
Another way to think of it is to consider your stopping distance: At 35 mph, it takes 136 feet to stop. If the speed limit is reduced to 25 mph, a driver could stop after only 55 feet. Lowering the speed limit around this small section of road would give drivers more time to react once a hazard comes into vision, therefore protecting pedestrians and the neighbors that live on the loop road.
There have been countless accidents, pets and deer have been hit and killed, pedestrians have had to leap into the ditch to avoid injury and there was a pedestrian hit and killed years back. This is a SAFETY ISSUE and we hope that you will support this project to protect our neighbors. Isn’t safety and peace of mind worth the minute you will lose by going 25 mph? Living a rural lifestyle should not be dangerous.
Help share the word and forward this petition on to neighbors that also use Echo Lake loop road. You can follow our progress on the website: https://www.echolakecommunity.org/programs/traffic-safety.
Please consider supporting this change for SAFETY in our Community and sign this petition.
Janet Macher, Echo Lake Community Group Contact the author of the petition