Speeding was a key topic of discussion at the Aberdeen Town Council Work Session Monday night.
Speeding has been a problem in various jurisdictions including Aberdeen. According to Aberdeen Town Manager Paul Sabiston, “Speeding is a chronic problem in growing towns and towns such as ours.”
According to a report presented to the Town Council, most speeding in residential neighborhoods is conducted by residents of those neighborhoods, not cut-through traffic.
Several possible speeding reduction methods include:
- Reduce the posted speed limit
- Change two-way stop intersections to four-way stop intersections
- Add additional two-way stop intersections
- Add rumble strips at key sections
- One-way roads
- Neighborhood watch groups
An initial survey of areas where speeding is a concern includes:
Bethesda Road (Bethesda subdivision) • Shepard’s Trail subdivision • John McQueen Rd and Sun Rd. • Legacy Lakes subdivision (various roads) • Sanborn/Saunders Rd. • Sanborn/Wilder Rd. • N. Poplar (downtown) • N. Poplar (Peach to U.S. 1). This is a partial list, and much more data will need to be collected.
Additional police patrols are not a long-term solution to the problem. Aberdeen has a limited police staff that can help to address speeding in certain areas, but the problem is too widespread for that alone to be effective.
Annually, 42 million speeding tickets are issued. In 2019 (the most recent statistics are available), North Carolina issued 441,338 speeding violations and warnings statewide. A speeding ticket can cost upward of $400 between the fine and court costs and can negatively affect your insurance rates.
Aberdeen Police Chief Carl Colasacco said, “When we look at this, we look at what we can do without spending a lot of money.”
Mayor Robert Farrell thanked everyone “for getting involved in this. A number of people have come before this board discussing speeding in their neighborhoods, and we all see it. It is not something we are not aware of. Anything we can do to slow this down will be helpful. We look forward to getting some things done to help our citizens.”
In other business, recently, it had come to the attention of the board that several port-a-potties at town parks had not been maintained. The board discussed adding public restrooms to Aberdeen parks. At Monday’s meeting, after a discussion of the pros and cons, the board voted to add bathrooms to Main Street Park along with a feasibility study for the additional six Aberdeen parks.
The board passed a resolution declaring a road closure for the Christmas parade. The parade will take place on December 10 between 10 a.m. and noon. The parade route includes N.C. 5 (East Main Street) from South Pine Street to North Sycamore Street and Poplar Street from East Maple Avenue to East South Street.
Colasacco presented commemorative badges to the town commissioners and manager thanking them for their support of the police department in providing the new police station.
The next meeting of the Aberdeen Town Commissioners will be their regular meeting on Oct. 24 at 6 p.m.
~Article by Sandhills Sentinel Reporter Chris Prentice. Contact him at [email protected].
