Irvine drivers will be forced to slow down on dozens of roadways after officials lowered speed limits and added new ones across town.
Staff reviewed 120 roadways in the city to propose speed limit changes.
Irvine City Council members voted unanimously to lower speed limits on 56 roadways, including portions of Alton Parkway, Irvine Boulevard, Jamboree Road and Portola Parkway.
Speed limits are being lowered by 5 mph in most cases, with some speed limits being lowered by 10 mph.
Additionally, 27 streets will get new speed limits where there weren’t any before.
Two street segments — both along Bosque — will get an increased speed limit.
According to the staff report, the speed limit increase for Bosque was recommended to encourage drivers to use that road as a connecting roadway instead of using neighborhood streets.
The staff report also says an increased speed limit on this roadway makes sense because there’s minimal parking or homes along this street.
Another 35 street segments were also reviewed by city staff, and those streets will maintain their current speed limit.
“If we can get people to reduce their speed of travel — sometimes traffic will just do that all by itself, but where it doesn’t, and where people understand that driving a little more slowly is apt to spare them and others a lot of grief — I think we’ll make some headway in the period ahead,” Mayor Larry Agran said at the council’s Jan. 27 meeting.
City officials are allowed to lower speed limits because of a California state law that was enacted in 2022.
Assembly Bill 43 gives city officials more control over how fast people can drive on public roads.
Prior to the law, speed limits were determined by how fast 85% of drivers were comfortable driving on a given road.
Wyatt Sing, traffic engineering administrator for the city, said the city has usually conducted this review annually.
“It’s something that we’re looking to do a little bit less frequently as speeds are stabilizing around the city,” he said at the meeting. “With the new AB 43 language that’s been provided, we’re seeing it as an opportunity to lower segments where we can and create some more consistency along roadway segments or corridors.”
City officials in Anaheim also lowered speed limits across 169 segments of roadway in 2024, including parts of Brookhurst Street, Lincoln Avenue, State College Boulevard and Katella Avenue.
Leaders lowered speed limits by 5 to 15 mph across town.
[Read: Slow Down: Anaheim to Lower Speed Limits on Major Roads]
In Irvine, officials said they hope the lower limits will make it safer for pedestrians and motorists.
“I think this enabling legislation at the state level, allowing us to reduce speed limits and make them stick, make them enforceable, I think this is a very favorable development,” Agran said at the meeting.
“I think it will make our city safer,” he said. “Obviously it takes time for people to adapt to lower speed limits, particularly finding out that they’re enforceable. They aren’t just a suggestion — they’re the law.”
Angelina Hicks is the Voice of OC Collegiate News Service Editor. Contact her at ahicks@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @angelinahicks13.