Staff Report
City Council
Item No. {{section.number}}.A
Meeting Date: May 14, 2025
From: John A. Corella, Director of Public Works
Title: 2025 City Wide Speed Limits Survey Results Review RECOMMENDATION:
The results of the 2025 City Wide Speed Limits Survey will be presented to the City Council for review, discussion and comment.
BACKGROUND:
According to the California Vehicle Code (CVC), it is mandatory for cities to establish speed limits that exceed 25 mph based on an Engineering and Traffic Survey conducted by a registered traffic engineer. These surveys are essential for ensuring that speed limits reflect current roadway and traffic conditions. These surveys are required to be updated every five years. However, if a traffic engineer determined that certain criteria have been met and there had been no significant changes in roadway or traffic conditions, the update period could be extended to seven or even ten years. The City's last citywide speed survey was completed in 2019.
Additionally, On October 8, 2021, Assembly Bill No. 43 (AB 43), California’s Traffic Safety bill, was signed into law by Governor Newsom. The bill extends the validity of speed limits justified by an engineering and traffic survey (E&TS) from seven (7) to up to fourteen (14) years, provided a registered engineer evaluates the survey and confirms that specified conditions are met.
AB 43 also grants local agencies more flexibility in setting speed limits within the CVC. It allows for speed limit reductions based on safety considerations, land use, and the presence of vulnerable pedestrian groups, including children, seniors, and individuals experiencing homelessness. Additionally, AB 43 enables lower speed limits in business activity districts and modifies the process for conducting traffic surveys.
AB 43 modifications to the existing speed limit laws included:
1. Vulnerable Pedestrians:
Local authorities are authorized to consider the safety of vulnerable pedestrian groups, such as children, seniors, and persons with disabilities, when adjusting speed limits based on findings from engineering and traffic surveys.
2. Speed Limits in Business/Residential Districts:
The bill establishes a default 25-mph speed limit on state highways located within business or residential districts and grants Caltrans the authority to modify speed limits in these areas based on engineering and traffic evaluations.
3. Lower Speed Limits:
The bill permits Caltrans and local authorities to establish speed limits as low as 15 or 20 miles per hour on state highways, where justified by engineering and traffic surveys and where necessary to enhance safety.
4. School and Business Activity Districts:
Local authorities are permitted to reduce speed limits near business activity districts and schools without the need for an engineering and traffic survey. A thirty-day (30-day) warning period is required following implementation, during which warnings (not citations) may be issued instead of violations.
5. Traffic Surveys and Enforcement:
The bill allows for further speed limit reductions and requires updates to the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. It also establishes a timeline for implementing these changes related to a new online traffic adjudication tool.
6. Speed Trap and Speed Limit Validity:
The bill extends the validity of speed limits justified by engineering and traffic surveys from seven (7) to fourteen (14) years and exempts senior zones and business activity districts from certain speed trap rules, similar to existing exemptions granted for school zones.
A summary of sections of the California Vehicle Code, as amended by AB 43, is attached to this report.
The changes introduced by AB 43 were designed to enhance roadway safety and provide local jurisdictions with greater flexibility in setting speed limits on non-state highways, particularly in areas frequented by vulnerable populations and within designated business activity, school, and senior zones. Under this expanded authority, cities may adopt lower speed limits when justified by an E&TS and when necessary to enhance public safety and ensure the orderly movement of traffic.
Given the extension of the 2019 city-wide speed survey in accordance with AB 43, the City must now evaluate whether existing speed limits remain appropriate under current conditions. This transition period presents an opportunity to reassess roadway safety, traffic flow, and community concerns, all of which play a crucial role in determining whether updates to posted speed limits are warranted.
DISCUSSION:
On November 13, 2024, the City Council authorized Albert A. Webb Associates (Webb) to conduct an engineering and traffic survey (E&TS) to establish citywide speed limits, with a not-to-exceed budget of $45,012. Webb has since completed the Citywide Speed Limits Study, and a draft of the report is attached. Key findings are summarized in Table 3-1, titled Speed Survey Recommendations.
As shown in Table 3-1, titled Speed Survey Recommendations in the attached document, eleven (11) of the City’s seventy-four (74) roadway segments are proposed for speed limit modifications, either increases or reductions. These recommendations are based on the engineering and traffic survey (E&TS) conducted by Webb, which followed rational and defensible procedures outlined in the California Vehicle Code and the California Manual for Setting Speed Limits. Adhering to this uniform methodology helps maintain public and legal confidence, ensures statewide consistency, and protects the process from political or emotional influence.
Speed limit determinations are based on the principle that a reasonable speed limit should align with the actual driving behavior of the majority of motorists. As a result, Webb selected speed limits that are both reasonable and effective, derived from measurements of drivers' speeds. Typically, speed limits established through an engineering and traffic survey (E&TS) are set near the 85th percentile speed. This is the speed at or below which 85 percent of drivers are traveling and statistically represents one standard deviation above the average speed.
Studies have consistently shown that the most effective method for establishing speed limits is to identify the 85th percentile speed and set the posted limit close to that value. Setting speed limits significantly higher or lower than this benchmark can lead to an increase in collisions. Speed limits aligned with the 85th percentile of free-flowing traffic are associated with improved safety and reduced speed variability among vehicles. For this reason, the 85th percentile is widely used to define the upper boundary of reasonable and prudent operating speeds.
The table below lists eleven (11) roadway segments where speed limit modifications are recommended by Webb. These proposed changes, whether increases or decreases, are based on factors such as prevailing traffic speeds, collision history, roadway and traffic conditions, surrounding land use (including business and residential density), proximity to school zones as outlined in the California Vehicle Code (CVC), and the safety of bicyclists and pedestrians.
Street From To Speed Modification
Date Palm Drive 30th Avenue McCallum Way Increase from 45 MPH to 50 MPH McCallum Way Date Palm Drive Santoro Drive Reduce from 30 MPH to 25 MPH McCallum Way Santoro Drive Da Vall Drive Reduce from 30 MPH to 25 MPH Mountain View Road Varner Road North City Limits Reduce from 55 MPH to 50 MPH Palm Drive Interstate 10 Varner Road Reduce from 60 MPH to 55 MPH Ramon Road Date Palm Drive Neuma Drive Reduce from 50 MPH to 45 MPH Ramon Road Neuma Drive Da Vall Drive Reduce from 50 MPH to 45 MPH Santoro Drive 30th Avenue McCallum Way Increase from 25 MPH to 35 MPH Varner Road West City Limits Edom Hill Road Reduce from 55 MPH to 50 MPH Whispering Palm Trail 30th Avenue McCallum Way Increase from 25 MPH to 30 MPH 30th Avenue Date Palm Drive Santoro Drive Reduce from 45 MPH to 40 MPH Staff will present the eleven (11) roadway segments proposed for changes, as recommended in the speed survey.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact at this time.
FIVE-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN:
Goal E: Safety
Objective: Cathedral City is safe for all who live, work, visit and play in our community.
Action E-2: Continue to explore and utilize technology to promote public safety.
ATTACHMENTS:
1 Draft Engineering and Traffic Survey Report
2 Assembly Bill 43 – Summary CVC Amendments