20 is Plenty
Slower Speed. Safer Streets.
In February 2020, the Tacoma City Council adopted Resolution No. 40559, committing to Vision Zero and the goal of eliminating traffic fatalities and serious injuries by 2035. Contained within Resolution No. 40559 was the direction to complete a study on the “State of Speed and Safety in Tacoma” and include consideration of a default speed limit of 25 MPH on arterials and 20 MPH on residential streets.
A key component of the Safe Systems approach under Vision Zero is Safer Speeds. The link between speed and injury severity in crashes is consistent, direct, and especially critical for more vulnerable roadway users. Lower speeds improve visibility, provide additional time for drivers to stop, and reduce the potential for fatal or severe injuries by lowering impact forces. Reducing vehicle speeds is one of the most effective strategies for preventing serious injuries and saving lives on our streets. Lower speed limits, especially in residential areas, near schools, and along high-crash corridors, helps to create a safer, more welcoming environment for everyone, whether walking, biking, rolling, or driving.
Speed Limit Reduction
In August 2022, City Council passed Ordinance No. 28825, which lowers the default speed limit on residential streets from 25 miles per hour (MPH) to 20 MPH. The ordinance also lowered the speed limit from 30 MPH to 25 MPH on arterial streets in four Neighborhood Business Districts, including 6th Avenue, Lincoln, McKinley Hill, and Old Town. Downtown and the Proctor and Sound Tacoma Neighborhood Business Districts were already 25 MPH.
The new speed limits went into effect January 1, 2023. With this, Tacoma joins numerous cities in the United States and around the world that have chosen to reevaluate and lower local speed limits in an effort to eliminate serious traffic crashes, encourage active transportation use, support sustainability, and make their communities safer.
Next Steps
The Vision Zero crash safety analysis found the majority of fatalities and serious injury crashes are occurring on arterial streets, making these streets a main focus for future Vision Zero efforts. To lower speeds on most arterial streets, more is needed to change driver behavior than simply lowering the speed limit and changing signs. Infrastructure changes are often needed to lower driver speeds and to make the street safe for all users.
Read the Speed Limit Reduction FactsheetUnsure of what the speed limit is on a certain street? Check out the Tacoma Speed Limits Map:
Tacoma’s Speed Limits Map-
Help bring awareness to Tacoma’s 20 MPH speed limit on residential streets by placing a yard sign in front of your home. Yard signs can be picked up at the Tacoma Municipal Building, Customer Service Center, at 747 Market Street. Yard signs will also be available at select City-sponsored events around the city.
Yard signs were designed by Natalie Dupille, a cartoonist and illustrator based in Seattle. Dupille’s comics and cartoons have appeared in many publications including The New Yorker, WIRED, and the LA Times. She is currently the Public Works Artist-in-Residence for the City of Tacoma. There are four designs to choose from representing different geographic areas of Tacoma.
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A lower residential speed limit supports Safe Routes to School by providing a safer environment for students to walk and roll to school. Speed limits are already 20 MPH on streets immediately adjacent to schools or at specific school crossings during arrival and dismissal times. The residential speed limit change makes it so all neighborhood walking routes to school have a speed limit of 20 MPH.
Tacoma Safe Routes to School Program -
While one of the more impactful ways to change driver behavior is through redesigning the roadway, in the short-term, automated enforcement may be the appropriate tool to reduce speed and crashes. The National Transportation Safety Board recommends the use of automated enforcement as an effective countermeasure for reducing the frequency and severity of speed-related crashes and reducing speeding.
Effective June 2024, Washington law expanded the types of locations where automated enforcement cameras can be used. The law also dictates the number of cameras that can be installed and when revenue must be shared with the State. The City of Tacoma is currently exploring options for expanding the use of automated enforcement. Location selection for red light and speed cameras will be based on a combination of data analysis and equity considerations. Each potential location will undergo an evaluation, which may include reviewing crash data, speed patterns, land use, roadway design, proposed infrastructure improvements, and factors related to equity.
More information about the expansion coming soon.