Dunedin High School is situated on Pinehurst Road in Dunedin, FL, just at the end of McLean Street. Although Pinehurst is a major collector road which should be used for school traffic, much of the school traffic cuts through on McLean Street. The speed limit on McLean is 25 mph but traffic studies showed that the 85^th percentile speed was 10 miles per hour faster than that. 

Until recently, the only way for the City of Dunedin, FL to deal with speeding traffic was with law enforcement. While enforcement can be effective, the police can not be everywhere at the same time. Recently the city created a traffic management program to improve the safety of their residential streets. 

The new program puts traffic calming solutions on streets where residents request them once a petition process is completed. The residents of the neighborhood are required to submit a petition signed by a majority of the residents showing support for the proposed solution. 

Once residents requested speed tables on McLean Street and obtained the necessary signatures, the City had to decide where to purchase the tables. Traffic Logix was the only company who manufactured a speed table that could stretch across the entire road width. Since the Traffic Logix tables are built with modular units, they can be built to accommodate any road width and cross section profile simply by interlocking additional units.

Joan Rice, PE, the Dunedin Transportation and Traffic Engineer, noted the advantage of using the Traffic Logix rubber tables. “Every speed table is the same throughout the city. [Unlike asphalt,] every one looks and feels the same. We also really like that you can move them for any road resurfacing and simply reinstall them again.” 

The goal for the speed tables on McLean street is to reduce the speed of cars to the posted speed limit. Although the city would also like to reduce volume, the main aim is to protect drivers and to make the roads safer for residents, pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists.

The city has already had calls and email from residents thanking them for the tables and commenting on how well they are working. As one resident said, “We have really noticed a difference in our neighborhood…”

A post traffic study conducted in September found that the 85^th percentile speed had been reduced to 25 mph, a 10 mph reduction that slowed cars to the posted speed limit. The traffic volume was significantly reduced as well with the average daily traffic decreasing from 891 vehicles in February to 480 in September. 

In addition to the 3 tables on McLean, the city has already placed an order for 11 more tables to be installed on Jackmar, Overcash, and Gulf View/Brady. When asked if they plan to continue using Traffic Logix rubber speed tables, Ms. Rice commented, “We certainly do. Now we are just waiting for the next neighborhood to make a petition.”