(Photo via Pexels).
The City Common Council will discuss the possibility of changing the speed limit on certain streets in Cortland at its meeting on Tuesday.
City mayor Scott Steve said on Friday that Cortland officials will look into reducing the speed limit from 30 to 25 miles-per-hour on Main Street and Miller Street.
Steve said the potential speed limit reduction on Main Street would occur on the stretch between the Clinton Avenue/Groton Avenue intersection and Port Watson Street.
A handful of factors prompted the consideration of reducing the speed limit on Main Street, Steve said, including when the street transitions from one way to two way, people slowing down traffic when backing up from an on-street parking spot and drivers not following the speed limit.
“It should even be slowed with people going so fast,” Steve said. “We’re just trying to slow down traffic there.”
Miller Street is being considered for speed limit reduction as city officials continue to discuss with local neighbors and the Cayuga Addiction Recovery Services (CARS) on the new opioid treatment facility opening soon on Euclid Avenue.
Steve said that drivers also use Miller Street to avoid the traffic light at the Homer Avenue/North Main Street/West Main Street intersection. Steve noted that the city may add local traffic signs to reduce the amount of cars that go through Miller Street.
“We want to slow (Miller Street) down as well,” Steve said. “People are using it as a cut-through instead of going through the light. “We’ll police it pretty heavily and get it to stop happening.”
Steve said that since Main Street and Miller Street are city streets, Cortland officials do not have to submit a speed limit reduction request to the New York State Department of Transportation.
“I’m sure there’s many other (streets) we’ll get phone calls for, but we’ll start with (Main Street and Miller Street) first,” Steve said.
