Ephrata won't support lower speed limit

Highway engineered correctly, officials say

EPHRATA - Ephrata city officials won't pursue talks with the state Department of Transportation about lowering the speed limit on a city stretch of state Route 28 after residents expressed concern to the state over rear-end accidents.

It's because state engineers are telling the city the speed limit is engineered correctly for section of highway, Ephrata City Administrator Wes Crago said at Wednesday's city council meeting.

Lowering the speed limit would be dangerous and a possible liability for the city if it supports a change the facts don't warrant, he said.

In April, Lula Allgood and a group of Ephrata residents sent a petition to the state Department of Transportation and a letter to Gov. Chris Gregoire asking the speed limit be lowered.

Allgood didn't return a phone call Thursday for comment.

DOT traffic engineer Jennene Ring responded in a letter. Speed limits are based on engineering studies including a review of prevailing speeds, physical features of the highway, traffic volumes and accident history, she wrote.

Speed radar studies were done in April.

"The study indicated very good compliance with the current posted speed limit, with the average speed of vehicles passing through the area at 46.9 mph," according to the study.

Ring also wrote the DOT would look at the residents' request to add striping designating a no-pass area and more signs.

Residents living south of 18th Avenue on state Route 28 asked to have the speed limit lowered from 50 mph to 35 mph in past years because of perceptions that a higher speed makes the area dangerous.

He said the area does become congested with people lining up to make left hand turns.

Allgood and the other proponents weren't at Wednesday's meeting.

At the meeting, Ephrata resident Steve Hiatt said the issue isn't the speed limit, but the lack of a center turn lane.

He said his wife and son were in a car accident on the state Route 28 about a month ago, but he didn't specify how it happened. There was another accident a week later on the same road, he said.