Overview

Public safety is a high priority for the City of Elk Grove, and we want to make sure our streets and neighborhoods are safe. That’s why the Elk Grove City Council adopted a Speed Control Program on November 12, 2008 that allows residents to work with city staff to identify tools to address speeding in your neighborhoods. Here’s how it works:

Level One Program (Non-vertical Devices)

  1. Resident submit a completed Speed Control Program Petition Form
  2. City staff review the requested street based on the initial qualifying criteria, and to see if any immediate calming devices may resolve the speed concerns. If no immediate calming solutions are available, the petition moves to the Level Two Program.

Level Two Program (Vertical Devices)

  1. Data may be collected to assess which types of calming tools may be most effective and a recommendation will be made
  2. If vertical devices, such as humps, lumps, or speed tables are recommended, then 75% of the residents on that street must sign the petition in favor
  3. Approval of vertical measures are then placed on the prioritized list for future funding

View Program Guidelines

What type of vertical speed control devices could be placed on my street?

If we qualify under the City’s adopted Speed Control Program, speed humps, speed lumps or speed tables are examples of vertical calming measures that may be placed on a qualifying street. These devices are explained below:

Speed Hump

Speed humps are 3 to 3½ inches high and 12 feet long placed across the road, and have a crossing speed of 15 to 20 mph.

Speed Lump

Speed lumps are similar in design to speed humps with at least two wheel cut-outs that allow large vehicles such as fire response and buses to pass with minimal slowing.

Speed Table

Speed tables are flat-topped speed humps approximately 22 feet long. The shape and design provides a gentler ride and requires less slowing of fire response vehicles and buses when compared to speed humps.

Does my street qualify: for speed humps, lumps or tables?

To qualify to be evaluated for speed humps, lumps or tables the street must

  • Be a two lane local residential street
  • Have a minimum length of 750 feet between traffic controls
  • Have a posted speed limit of 25 mph
  • Have adjacent land use of greater than 75% residential, park or school frontage
  • Have an average daily traffic volume of 500-2000 vehicles per day
  • For vertical measures, 85th% speeds need to be 35 mph or more to be effective. Experience has shown that speeds less than that will not reduce any further with vertical measures. However, streets with less than 35mph 85th% may still be eligible for Level One options.
  • If the eligible street is a primary emergency response route, the Fire Department will review for emergency response time impact

Once my street qualifies, what are the criteria to rank the requests?

To rank requests City staff will collect traffic counts, speed data and evaluate adjacent land use. This information will be used to prioritize streets based on the following criteria:

  • Vehicle Traffic (Daily) – 1 point for every 50 vehicles
  • Vehicle Speed (Daily 85th percentile) – 1 point for every MPH over 25 mph
  • Land use o 1 point for every residential unit adjacent to the Street o 1 point for every 25 feet of apartment frontage o 1 point for every 25 feet of school frontage o 1 point for every 25 feet of park or playground frontage

How many streets will have these devices installed on them?

The number of qualifying streets that will have devices installed on them will depend on available funding.

What happens if my street is not high enough on the list to make the installation of these devices?

This program is anticipated to be funded annually. As additional requests are received and qualified, they will be prioritized with existing qualifying requests. Therefore, a street not receiving devices on one construction cycle may be higher on the list for the next cycle.

What happens if my street does not qualify for the devices?

If you street does not qualify for devices there is a two year period before further requests can be made for traffic calming devices.