Speeders in the city of Buffalo beware. Mayor Byron Brown is responding to residential complaints about speeding throughout the city.
Mayor Brown has launched a new joint traffic-safety initiative with city Public Works and Buffalo Police. It is an effort to slow traffic in several spots throughout the city.
Brown appeared in the city’s north district on Amherst Street at Reservation Street with North District Common Council Member Joseph Golobmek. It is one of the area’s city residents have voiced complaints about speeders.
“We are here on Amherst Street which has been an area where we have received complaints of chronic speeding,” Mayor Brown stated.
The new traffic-safety initiative is an effort to slow traffic in several spots throughout the city. It includes speed warnings and speed bumps.
“Six electronic speed signs that will be delivered shortly. Ten temporary speed bumps. The speed bumps will primarily be used in neighborhoods where residents have complained about speeding,” Mayor Brown explained.
Mayor Brown insists this is not in response to the recent rash of hit and run fatalities in the city, but instead of initiative he proposed in February.
“We announced this initiative back in February before any hit and runs occurred. This is something my administration had talked about with the embers of city council. We have been getting a lot of calls from residents throughout the city about speeding, about people going through traffic signals, going through stop signs, not obeying the rules of the roll, not obeying posted speed limits,” responded Brown.
One of the digital speed signs is on Amherst Street at Reservation. Golombek told reporters he brought the problems of speeders to the mayor’s attention.
“He and I walked – and I walked with other members of his administration and we came up with solution to some of the problems we have here. Hopefully this will work and people will slow down. But be forewarned – people driving down Amherst street that your days of speeding area limited and we are going to be coming out to get you,” Golombek declared.
Buffalo Police Chief Anthony Barba noted the warning signs are placed on streets to allow motorists a chance to slow drive and drive safely.
Chief Barba said it is similar to how the city worked to slow traffic along the 198 at Parkside over the last couple of years.
“We used this on Parkside just to make people aware,” said Barba.
“We don’t write tickets based on that – we write tickets based on radar and cars and also other violations,” Barba noted.
The city has issued more than 1,000 tickets at Parkside and 198.
Speed messaging signs will also be placed in other spots of the city at Warren Spahn Way near Cazenovia Park in South Buffalo, Niagara and Ferry on the west side and in the University District on Newburgh Avenue.
