Most if not all residential streets in Canada are signed at 40kmph which is way to fast IMO. 30kmph is used near parks. Some residential streets though are starting to get dropped to 30kmph which is a good start. Though people here seem to always drive 20kmps above the limit without fail always.
IMO most streets in Canada are very inconsistent in design and speed limit implications. It would also be nice if we classified our streets, roads, high speed roads, and highways more efficiently. Instead somehow we get a sidewalk and bikepath along a highway?
People drives the speed they feel is appropriate for the design of the road, not the posted speed limit. If you make your neighborhood streets wide, straight, and open people will drive 40+ kph regardless of the posted sign.
One of the strategies the Netherlands did was to formally classify car routes into one of three slots sort like: streets, roads, freeways. Then any streets get narrowed, traffic calming, closer trees by the road, jogs, and speed bumps. People instinctively then mostly drive 25 kph or slower.
The US system for picking speed limits is actually retroactive: build the road, measure how fast people choose to drive, and pick a speed limit about 80% of the mean. I’m many cases it’s not nearly as intentionally designed as you might think.
20mph/30kph seems like a golden zone. Coincidentally that’s also where most ebikes in the US are governed, so speed diffetentials should drop to a safer level too.
20kmph which is just under 15mph
Most if not all residential streets in Canada are signed at 40kmph which is way to fast IMO. 30kmph is used near parks. Some residential streets though are starting to get dropped to 30kmph which is a good start. Though people here seem to always drive 20kmps above the limit without fail always.
IMO most streets in Canada are very inconsistent in design and speed limit implications. It would also be nice if we classified our streets, roads, high speed roads, and highways more efficiently. Instead somehow we get a sidewalk and bikepath along a highway?
People drives the speed they feel is appropriate for the design of the road, not the posted speed limit. If you make your neighborhood streets wide, straight, and open people will drive 40+ kph regardless of the posted sign.
One of the strategies the Netherlands did was to formally classify car routes into one of three slots sort like: streets, roads, freeways. Then any streets get narrowed, traffic calming, closer trees by the road, jogs, and speed bumps. People instinctively then mostly drive 25 kph or slower.
The US system for picking speed limits is actually retroactive: build the road, measure how fast people choose to drive, and pick a speed limit about 80% of the mean. I’m many cases it’s not nearly as intentionally designed as you might think.
20mph/30kph seems like a golden zone. Coincidentally that’s also where most ebikes in the US are governed, so speed diffetentials should drop to a safer level too.