Portsmouth City Council will consider supporting changing the law to slow down cars in the city. A proposed resolution says it’s part of a multifaceted plan to calm traffic on streets which includes redesigning streets. Also on the agenda for Monday’s meeting is accepting grant money for law enforcement.
Portsmouth Police will soon be outfitted with new body cameras and dash cams, thanks to grants from the Ohio Department of Public Safety.
The agency awarded Portsmouth a state grant for $14,385 to purchase body cameras and related equipment. The city doesn’t need to come up with any matching funds for this grant, but they must create a dedicated account to track how the money is spent.
The state also awarded Portsmouth $15,315 in federal pass-through funds to purchase car cameras. The city must provide $5,105 in matching funds.
The state awarded an additional $6,900.00 in confidential funds to the Southern Ohio Drug Taskforce. An additional federal pass-through grant for confidential funds in the amount of $12,400 requires Portsmouth to provide $4,133.33 in matching funds.
City Council must first vote to accept these grants and allocate the matching funds, but the legislation is expected to pass.
Calming Down Traffic
Also on Portsmouth City Council’s agenda for Monday’s meeting is a measure expressing support for a revision to the Ohio Revised Code that would allow Portsmouth and other communities to set their own speed limits.
The proposed resolution reads, “ Whereas, pedestrian fatalities and injuries as a result of cars speeding remains a public safety issue, and Portsmouth recently witnessed the tragic death of a pedestrian on our roads; and Whereas the solution to this issue is multifaceted including redesigning road to calm traffic on city streets with Complete Streets plans, enforcement of speed limits, and lowering speed limits; and Whereas, there are several residential streets in Portsmouth that has received numerous complaints of speeding cars in areas where children are playing and families walking; and Whereas, Ohio Revised Code Section 4511.21 precludes municipalities from setting speed limits on streets within their own jurisdiction without approval from the Ohio Department of Transportation; and Whereas, this prohibition infringes on municipalities’ ability to address excessive speeding in a way that protects the health and safety of its residents.
Now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED by City Council of the City of Portsmouth, Ohio: SECTION I. That this Council ask the Ohio General Assembly to amend Sections 4511.06 and 4511.21 of the Ohio Revised Code to enable municipalities to set speed limits within their own jurisdictions on all thoroughfares except for highways within the city limits.”
Passing this resolution would not change the law, it only encourages state legislators to change the law and allow the city to make its own speeding rules.