Hi folks,

A few take aways from yesterday’s hearing at City Hall:

– City Council was unanimously in support of Baker’s 20 mph proposal. The Council will officially vote on the proposal next week. Assuming it passes in City Council, it would then need to be approved by the Mayor, and next would go to the statehouse.  It’s filed as a Home Rule Petition, meaning while the state would need to approve it, it provides allowance for the City of Boston only.

-While the City Council has put forth similar proposals before, they have failed to pass at the state level. The question of who/why/how the measure was previously blocked was brought up at the hearing, but no one had any definitive answer.

– BTD’s Chris Osgood, Gina Fiandaca and Vineet Gupta all highlighted that the lowering of the speed limit intersects with the City’s Vision Zero Action Plan and the work currently underway (Neighborhood slow zone pilot:Talbot-Norfolk Triangle, Priority Corridor for re-design: Mass Ave)

– The City recently installed “speed boards” and “rapid flash beacons” on cut-through streets and others noted for speeding/high crash areas. BPD noted that the speed boards capture data in real time, allowing them to know when and where they need to provide better enforcement.

– BTD said that after the intial Neighborhood Slow Zone Pilots, the plan is to create an open application process for neighborhood groups to request specific traffic calming measures in a focused area.

Read Globe coverage of the hearing here.

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