Council to vote on speed limit along Route K

The Columbia City Council will vote Monday whether to decrease the speed limit along a portion of Route K.

The Missouri Department of Transportation recommended reducing the speed limit from 55 mph to 45 mph at Scott Boulevard to Coneflower Avenue.

Lisa McCary, who lives in the Cascade Neighborhood just off of Route K, thinks the speed limit should be lowered.

“People go way too fast on that road,” McCary said. “It’s 55 right now and people are going even faster than that, which makes it extremely dangerous when there’s kids so close by.”

In July, MODOT conducted a speed study along Route K, which included tracking drivers’ speed. Officials determined the average speed for drivers was below the posted 55 mph speed limit. The average speed east of Old Plank Road was 50 mph.

The study also considered crash history, the amount of pedestrians and bicyclists as well as the number of access points along the road.

Jeff Wood, who also lives in the Cascade Neighborhood, thinks the speed limit is just fine.

“I think it should be 55 all the way because you get confusion with Providence, which I think is 50 or 55,” he said. “Then it drops to 45, then it gets back up to 55 – that’s a little confusing. I rather it be 55 all the way across the board.”

Other neighbors in the Cascade neighborhood said they’re indifferent about the speed limit being 55 mph. Dustin Hanson said he thinks there may be some other options to better manage the flow of traffic.

“I can’t see lowering the speed limit to have a really big impact in anything along the road,” he said. “I’d rather see something like stoplights in the busier or some different maintenance like mowing along the roads.”

Council tabled the issue in September asking for more information from MODOT.

If council voted to reduce the speed limit, MODOT said it would alert drivers by putting up message boards along Route K about a week in advance before the change in posted speed.