Speed limits changing around SLO County this month

Drivers, be on the lookout this month for changing speed limits on roads around San Luis Obispo County.

Limits will be reduced on two roads where development has slowed traffic. One road will see an increased limit and six others will have limits added where none had been set, according to Public Works Deputy Director Dave Flynn.

Buckley Road between Vachell Lane and Highway 227 in San Luis Obispo will be reduced from 55 to 50 mph. And Main Street in Templeton between River Run Road to Ramada Drive will be reduced from 45 to 40 mph.

A 1-mile stretch of Soda Lake Road south of Highway 58 in California Valley will increase from 35 to 50 mph.

Other changes include:

▪  In Los Osos, the speed limits will be set at 25 mph on three roads: El Moro Avenue from Second Street to the El Moro Bikeway entrance at 12th Street, Paso Robles Avenue from 11th Street to 18th Street, and Santa Ynez Avenue from Eighth Street to Mountain View Drive.

▪  In Paso Robles, the speed limit for Monterey Road between the north and south intersection of Highway 101, which is currently unmarked, will be set at 50 mph.

▪  In San Luis Obispo, the speed limit for Vachell Lane, which was once 40 mph but is currently unmarked, will be set at 50 mph.

▪  In San Miguel, the speed limit for Cemetery Road between 10th Street and Highway 101, which is currently unmarked, will be set at 50 mph.

The changes are based on routine reviews based on surveys of the prevailing speed of traffic. Limits are set or confirmed at or below the speed at which 85 percent of the drivers drive during the sample period. Setting limits based on prevailing speed allows the California Highway Patrol to enforce limits that would be upheld in court, Flynn said.

Generally, speed surveys result in increased limits. This year’s results are against the trend, as some areas start to become more suburban than rural, Flynn said.

New signs will be posted by the end of the month.

This story was originally published November 10, 2017 at 3:25 PM with the headline "Speed limits changing around SLO County this month."