32kph(20mph) city speed limits

I've noticed that the more affluent neighbourhoods are the ones that get the 30 km/h speed limit. I am sure it's no coincidence.

Yes, but it doesn't do much good. We managed to get speed humps and a 30km limit on Windermere north of Bloor in Bloor West Village to deal with the rush hour cut through traffic. Neither have worked. The SUVs go over the humps at speed and the 30km limit is not enforced. Neither are the 'no trucks' signs or the stop signs. Not even the police, in cars or on bikes, stop. So, even affluence has its limits and sooner or later one of the neighbourhood kids or senior citizens is going to pay the price for out street being turned into another car/truck commuter freeway.

Familiar story.

Link to RoadPeace

20 mph default speed limit in built up areas

20 mph default speed limit: good for children, cyclists and the planet
RoadPeace believes that a 20 mph default speed limit is essential for the safety of our most vulnerable, and for the sustainability of our planet. Safer streets, cohesive communities and reduced dependency on cars are some of the major reasons for making 20 mph the default on our city streets.

Ten reasons for a 20 mph default limit are:
1 Reduced deaths and injuries
2 Reduced fear
3 Equity for non-motorists
4 Reduced costs to the economy
5 Reduced congestion
6 Less costly to implement
7 More vibrant urban centres and healthier communities
8 Better for the environment
9 Achievable
10 Widespread support

tks

In the bulk of my travels in the city I have found that the number of people speeding has been much lower now than in the past ten years, and the amount by which most speed to have dropped. I think that the amount of press, and the enforcement that the TPS and the OPP, have been doing on excessive speeding is working. We don't seem to speed as much, or at least by as much as we used to. And this is THE big reason that the total number of deaths due to motorcar collisions and crashes has declined in the past year.

There are, however, only a very few places in Toronto where a 30km/h speed limit exist. And, yes, they all seem to exist in the more affluent communities. Perhaps because these people can do the research, and can afford to take some of their time to convince their Councillor that this change is necessary for their community.

Because of the rarity of these 30km/h zones many drivers, it would seem, don't know how to (or cannot) change their behaviour within these zones.

Dropping speed limits everywhere by 10km/h (to the minimum 30km/h allowed by provincial law) the 30km/h zones would be much more common place. Therefore all drivers would become used to these speeds, and there would be more compliance overall.

If we dropped the speed limits, the streets would require one to drive slower during off peak times than we are currently used to, however most drivers would find driving to be less stressful at these slower speeds. During peak times there would be little difference to most road users as traffic rarely reaches posted speed limits on congested roads. The slower speed also means a little bit more time for drivers and other roads users to react before a crash or collision occurs; and that the severity of that crash or collision is reduced.

Long distance off-peak commutes for drivers who exclusively use city roads would increase the most, the majority of the shorter trips that are taken would be largely unaffected as traffic lights are often able eat up the time difference anyway.

On the other hand, and for cycling advocates, the only significant downside of dropping the overall speed limits by 10km/h is that it becomes much harder to justify cycling specific infrastructure -- because the streets are so much safer by default. However this would also go a long way towards the bike plan's goals of making ALL streets safer for cyclists.