Drivers and even some cyclists are going to have to hit their brakes as they travel through Encinitas.
The speed limit on many streets has been reduced in an effort to help make them safer, but the rollout is causing a lot of confusion, a month after the law went into place.
That’s because in places on Coast Highway 101, 30 miles per hour is painted on the street, but the sign on the bike path next to it says 35 miles per hour, baffling drivers like Robert Siracusa after noticing it.
"Do I go 32 and a half and split the difference," Siracusa asked.
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Despite the confusion, Siracusa and his wife appreciate the city of Encinitas’ new law to reduce the speed limit on dozens of streets by 5 miles per hour.
"We're all out here to enjoy the beauty. You don't want to see anyone hurt," Robin Strom said.
Reducing the speed limit started being discussed after a 15-year-old was killed in an e-bike crash in June 2023. Later that year, Assembly Bill 43 passed, allowing cities to lower speed limits on certain roads. Encinitas' reduced speed ordinance took effect in July of this year.
Encinitas Mayor Tony Kranz says the mismatched signs come down to money.
"We're trying to do this in as cost effective manner as possible, so we are moving some signs from one location to another in order to keep from having to make more signs than we need,” Kranz said.
It's all part of what's known as traffic calming, which are measures to help reduce drivers' speed. The overall effort is to help protect pedestrians and cyclists.
“For every 10 miles an hour slower that people drive when there's a crash, be between cars and pedestrians or bicyclists, the likelihood of surviving goes up exponentially, so it's really important that we obey the speed limits," Kranz said.
Coast Highway 101, where speeds were 30 miles per hour or more, had its speed limits reduced by 5 miles per hour. Some residential streets will be reduced to 20 miles per hour. And so-called safety corridors, or areas with a high number of crashes or within a quarter mile of a school, will also have their speed reduced.
It's music to the ears of Hayes and his father Pete Levine, who sometimes ditch their pick-up for a bike.
“I think that's great. Anything to make it safer. We go riding all the time in our e-bike. Anything to make it safer for families,” Levine said.
Kranz says all correct speed limit signs should be up by the end of August. Increased enforcement won't start until October, after signs have been up for 30 days.
In all, the city says the project is costing about $120,000.
