BOZEMAN — The school year brings a lot of new changes, but something that Bozeman drivers might notice themselves doing a lot more this school year is pumping the brakes as the City of Bozeman now has lower speed limits in school zones.
“School zones are very kind of dangerous in the morning because people are in such a rush to get to work,” says parent Lisa Jones.
As Jones walked with her daughter on Monday morning she’s glad to see the lower speed limits around school zones.
“Oh, I feel it's fantastic. I feel that it's definitely a positive thing for sure,” she says.
Isabel Huff watches her daughter and two little ones that she nannies; she's hopeful that the streets of Bozeman will be safer with lower speeds.
“I think it's really good. I think it's important to keep the kids safe. And kids are walking to school by themselves,” says Huff.
The lower speed limits come after city leaders voted to lower speeds on city-controlled streets this month.
“The first were ones that were around schools, mostly over on the west side of town,” says Nick Ross, Bozeman Transportation and Engineering Director.
As Bozeman students went back to school Monday, school zones saw the newest change.
“So, we have adjusted school speed zones at seven schools across the city,” says Ross.
Huff says while she walks around her neighborhood, speeding isn't the only issue she sees.
“People don't stop signs and people are not following the speed limit and stuff. So it makes me a little uneasy," she says.
Speed limits aren't the only thing that drivers are going to start to notice, especially on Bozeman's west side. Drivers will notice a lot more planters that are meant to be traffic-calming stations. And you'll notice a lot more pedestrian visibility access points.
“It's to prevent illegal passing and protect pedestrians in the crosswalks,” says Ross.
The parents I spoke with say they want to see the changes enforced. Ross says Bozeman police will step up enforcement, especially this week.
“We are doing more proactive patrolling; what you see is mostly event-based or need-based. So one of the big changes with schools was so that we removed the time-of-day component,” says Ross.
Drivers in Bozeman should expect to see a lot more enforcement, especially in school zones this week, and then in the next coming weeks, drivers can also expect to see a reduction in speed limits on city-controlled streets starting on Bozeman's West Side and then moving east, starting in the beginning of September in Bozeman.
