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Elkhorn Seeks Lower Speed Limit Near School

Posted on: Saturday, 19 November 2005, 18:00 CST

By Rick Ruggles

Drivers legally whip along at 55 mph on Highway 31 near Elkhorn's high school and main business areas.

Elkhorn city and school administrators have asked the Nebraska Department of Roads to reduce the speed limit on the state highway, but the chances of that occurring appear low.

The state widened part of Highway 31, also known as 204th Street, this year. And while it is true that the road's speed limit was 55 mph even before it was widened to four lanes, administrators now say drivers feel more at ease than ever about blowing through at 55 mph and higher.

Elkhorn High School drivers empty onto Highway 31 off Veterans Drive and Roberts Street. Metropolitan Community College's Elkhorn campus is connected to Highway 31 by Cumberland Drive.

Tim Weander, Department of Roads district engineer, said the state studied the road this fall and found 55 mph appropriate.

Nevertheless, he said, the state is re-evaluating that conclusion based on Elkhorn Police Chief Tim Dempsey's observation that several wrecks had occurred since the four lanes were opened in late summer.

Weander made no promises that the state would lower the speed limit.

The state widened Highway 31 from north of West Dodge Road to the town's railroad viaduct over a 16-month period ending in August. During construction, the speed limit was 35 mph or lower, Weander said.

That's why it was a jolt when the project ended and drivers began racing past at the 55 mph speed limit, City Administrator Don Eikmeier and others said.

"I was surprised, quite honestly, that it was put back to 55," Elkhorn Schools Superintendent Roger Breed said.

Dempsey this week referred to 10 accident reports involving that one-mile stretch of Highway 31 since construction ended. Not all of those wrecks were attributable to speed. Although reports indicate at least two of the accidents caused injuries, none involved fatalities.

Dempsey maintained in a memo forwarded by Eikmeier to the Department of Roads that when Highway 31 was two lanes, people tended to drive at 45 mph because they did not feel at ease driving faster. Now, with the road at four lanes, they use every bit of the 55 mph limit, he said.

"The biggest problem and potential for a serious accident is at the intersection of (Highway) 31 and Veterans Drive for northbound traffic," Dempsey wrote.

Elkhorn High School Assistant Principal Chris Arent said any time inexperienced drivers are asked to turn into traffic, they can easily misjudge how quickly an oncoming car at 55 mph can arrive at an intersection.

"We don't view it as being a safe situation," Arent said.

Source: Omaha World - Herald

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