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CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
City of Anaheim
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS
DATE: JUNE 11, 2024
FROM: PUBLIC WORKS AND POLICE DEPARTMENTS
SUBJECT: CITYWIDE SPEED LIMITS ORDINANCE
ATTACHMENT (Y/N): YES ITEM # 12
GOVERNMENT CODE § 84308 APPLIES: NO
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council, by Ordinance, amend Chapter 14.40 of Title 14 of the Anaheim Municipal Code relating to speed limits on city streets.
DISCUSSION:
In 2016, the City Council adopted the current Ordinance to establish posted speed limits on street segments Citywide. At that time, a Citywide Engineering and Traffic Survey (Survey) was conducted as required by the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) and California Vehicle Code (CVC). A Survey is required for the Police Department to issue speeding citations utilizing radar equipment. The Survey is also required every five years for the Police Department to issue radar speeding citations. The time span between studies can be extended if the citing officer has completed a minimum of 24 hours of certified radar operator training and if no significant changes in roadway or traffic conditions have occurred since the last review.
The current Survey has exhausted all available extensions, and a new Survey is required.
Local residential streets are exempt from the Survey requirement. The CVC defines a residential district as a quarter of a mile of a roadway that is occupied on one side by 13 or more separate dwelling units, or a quarter of a mile of a roadway that is occupied on both sides by 16 or more separate dwelling units. The CVC allows for the speed limit on residential streets to be set at 25 miles per hour (mph), without a Survey or those residential streets included in the City’s speed limit Ordinance.
The MUTCD provides guidance for agencies to consider the following major factors in performing a Survey and establishing appropriate speed limits:
Prevailing speeds as determined by traffic engineering speed survey measurements of unimpeded (weekday non-peak period) traffic. Reported collision history.
Roadway conditions not readily apparent to the driver (e.g., driveway density and visibility, proximity to schools, and high pedestrian or bicyclist activity).
Citywide Speed Limits Ordinance
June 11, 2024
Posted speed limits are established at the nearest 5 mph increment of the 85th percentile (the speed that 85 out of 100 vehicles are traveling at/or less than). For cases in which the nearest 5 mph increment would require a rounding down, the speed limit may be reduced by an additional 5 mph based on roadway conditions and/or safety factors cited above.
For cases in which the nearest 5 mph increment would require rounding up, then the speed limit may be rounded down based on roadway conditions and/or safety factors cited above.
Since the adoption of the current Ordinance, several laws have been passed related to the establishment of speed limits. AB 43 (Friedman) – Traffic Safety was signed into law by California’s Governor in 2021 allowing the City more opportunity to better manage speed, specifically:
Resisting Speed Creep: “Speed Creep” is the phenomenon where the state’s 85th percentile law inadvertently rewards vehicles drivers for driving at an unsafe speed by increasing the speed limit. Local agencies may now, after completing an engineering and traffic survey and finding that the newly calculated speed limit would increase to a limit that is unreasonable or unsafe, retain the current speed limit by ordinance.
The City of Anaheim Public Works Department - Traffic Engineering Section hired an industry expert in establishing speed limits to complete the Citywide Survey. The consultant was tasked with performing the Survey to determine legally enforceable speed limits with safety in mind.
This process was in conformance with requirements of both the California MUTCD, the CVC, and the newly adopted AB 43 guidance in effect.
Studies have shown that there is a direct correlation between the speed of a vehicle and the severity of a collision. A pedestrian involved in a collision with a moving vehicle traveling at 20 mph has a 90% chance of surviving, at 30 mph the survival rate is 50%, and at 40 mph it is only 10%. Recognizing these statistics, the Traffic Engineering Section in conjunction with its’ consultant prioritized safety when conducting the Survey; utilizing all options available within the guidance to ensure speed limits are set at the safest speed possible.
Radar speed survey data was collected along 328 street segments in the City to determine the 85th percentile speed, which is the speed that 85 out of 100 vehicles are traveling at/or less than.
For each street segment, additional roadway conditions were also observed (e.g., residential density, proximity to schools, number of driveways entering the roadway, and pedestrian or bicyclist activity). Finally, collision data was collected, and rates were calculated by comparing the number of speed-involved collisions over a recent two-year period with the million vehicle miles of travel. Following the guidance outlined above, the consultant developed Citywide speed limit recommendations. Public Works staff reviewed and agreed with the recommendation which resulted in:
Speed limits remained the same on 158 segments.
Speed limits reduced on 169 segments.
New posted speed limits on 1 segment.
A complete list of the 328 street segments analyzed, the recommended speed limit, and a comparison to the existing speed limit are included as Attachment 2.
Citywide Speed Limits Ordinance
June 11, 2024
IMPACT ON BUDGET:
Sufficient funds are available in the Public Works Department’s General Fund budget for street sign maintenance to modify and/or install the legally enforceable speed limit signs.
Respectfully submitted, Concurred,
Rudy Emami Rick P. Armendariz
Director of Public Works Chief of Police
Attachments:
1. Speed Limits Ordinance
2. Recommended Speed Limits