Speed Limit Being Reduced from 30 MPH to 25 MPH at Whispering Ridge Drive and 10 Other Lake Wales Roads
by James Coulter
Are you planning on driving through Whispering Ridge Drive as a shortcut between 9th and 11th Street?
Well, slow down! Because the speed limit for that road and 10 others in Lake Wales will be having their speed limits reduced to 25 MPH.
At their regular meeting on Tues. Aug. 20, Lake Wales City Commissioners approved its consent agenda. One of the items was to modify the Official Traffic Map, reduce the speed limit for 11 city roads, and install the appropriate signage for those roads.
Whispering Ridge Drive, along with 11 adjacent roads, will have its speed limit reduced from 30 MPH to 25 MPH. The other 10 roads include:
• North Miami Street
• Marci Drive
• Sally Road
• Roberta Road
• Lancelot Drive
• Joyce Road
• Corinne Drive
• Susan Drive
• Naes Lane
• Tobie Street
The speed limits for these roads are being changed to match the existing speed limits of surrounding and adjacent roads, which are 25 MPH, according to the city memo written by Lt. Emmanuel Figueroa.
As such, reducing the speed limits would permit safer driving conditions, as well as increased pedestrian safety, Lt. Figueroa wrote.
“The volume of pedestrian and vehicular traffic on these roadways increases significantly in the mornings and afternoons, creating a safety concern as residents are walking throughout the neighborhoods and children are playing in the area,” he wrote.
The city is estimated to spend $1,365.32 through the Streets Department to install new signage to reflect this change in speed limits.