Protesting Very Low Speed Limits, and Aggressive Enforcement of These Limits, in Beaverton, Oregon

We, the undersigned, hereby object to the low speed limits of 35 mph in certain adjacent, busy areas of Beaverton, including, but not limited to,

1.) Walker Road near 217,

2.) SW Beaverton Hillsdale Highway near 217,

3.) Cedar Hills Blvd between Cornell and Walker, and

4.) Canyon Road between TV Highway and Walker.

We are aware that a nontrivial number of drivers have recently been ticketed for speeding in these areas, and we feel that this is a result of an effort to target a larger number of drivers.

Many of these areas do not have wandering children, as one may expect to find in a residential area bearing a 30-35 mph speed limit. Furthermore, several of these areas have 2-4 lanes and were constructed to maintain a moderate level of traffic flow.

Speeding tickets issued were in the range of $150-$200, with most at or near $200, an outrageously excessive figure given the violation. We are of the opinion that the traffic management policy in this case has crossed the line between protection of public safety to a targeted exploitation of conservative but efficient drivers.

This petition is not an indictment of the police bureau or any law enforcement officer. It is also not an objection to, or a claim about, any particular speeding ticket or violation. Rather, it is a general complaint regarding the policy of the very low speed limits in areas of central Beaverton, and also of the apparent decision to aggressively pursue drivers and assign them large fines.

We ask that these policies be reviewed and changed to allow for more reasonable driving speeds in these areas. Similar streets in Beaverton away from the areas mentioned are rated at 45 mph at minimum, and we feel that a 45-50 mph limit would be much more appropriate.