Golden approves photo radar enforcement, lowering residential speed limits

BY CORINNE WESTEMAN CWESTEMAN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Golden streets will hopefully become a little safer for everyone, as the City Council has passed two tra c safety-focused ordinances.

e rst, called “20 is Plenty,” lowers the default speed limit on residential streets from 25 mph to 20 mph. e goal is to reduce the number and severity of accidents, and it’ll go into e ect in the coming days, city sta said.

e second allows the Golden Police Department to use a photo radar van for speed enforcement around the city.

While GPD had hoped to introduce its van in time for Back-toSchool season, Chief Joe Harvey con rmed it won’t be ready until late August or early September.

e van, which will cost about $86,000 a year, has been built. However, Harvey said the vendor is still working on the software that processes the citations and warnings.

At the July 25 City Council meeting, Harvey described how the van can be stationed in residential areas, school zones, construction zones, and roadways adjacent to a park.

It can also be used in “a corridor,” which is a specially designated street or area of interest. Golden hasn’t given any areas this designation yet, but it could in future, he said.

Once GPD has positioned the van, it will post signage 300 feet away informing drivers that photo enforcement is in e ect. e van will then take photos of any vehicle going over the speed limit. Harvey said those speeding by 10 mph or less will only receive a warning, and any speeding by 11 mph or more will receive a citation.

Harvey said citations will be mailed to the vehicle’s registered owner, who can challenge it in municipal court. e nes are $40, but can be doubled to $80 in school zones. Like a parking citation, there are no points associated against a driver’s license, and the citation isn’t reported to the state.

Harvey has said GPD will rotate the photo radar van around the city to enforce in areas that receive a lot of speeding complaints. He’s also emphasized school zone safety, saying it’ll be in Golden’s school zones frequently.

Along with photo radar enforcement, City Council also passed its “20 is Plenty” ordinance, which it’s been discussing since last summer.

Other cities like Denver and Boulder have implemented similar policies to help prevent the number of and the severity of tra c accidents.

Councilor Don Cameron has described how bodily damage sustained from a 30-mph collision is like falling from a three-story building. For a 20-mph collision, it’s closer to a 12-foot fall.

Councilors, sta , and Mobility and Transportation Advisory Board members have supported lowering the default speed limits. Over the last year, the city enacted pilot programs along Lookout Mountain Road, Peery Parkway, and South Ford Street.

City Engineer Joseph Puhr has said there’d be minimal cost to implement it between crew time and repurposing city signs. Some streets or sections of streets will see lowered speed limits.

City Manager Scott Vargo conrmed it’ll be “rolled out neighborhood by neighborhood” with new signage in place to inform motorists of the change.

“(It) won’t be enforced in any given locatino until the rollout and signage e ort has taken place to adequately inform drivers of the change,” he said.

Brown and Cameron were happy to see “20 is Plenty” come to fruition after a year of discussion and data-gathering. Cameron commended people in his ward who pushed for this behind the scenes, saying, “ is is good for all users.”