Asheville looks to 'cushion' speeding in neighborhoods

Joel Burgess | The Citizen-Times

ASHEVILLE - Neighborhood speeding is a chief complaint of many residents, with tales of parked vehicles smashed by zooming cars and parents too frightened to let their children cross the street.

But increased policing is costly and draws officers away from other duties. And "traffic calming" measures, such as speed humps, can be problematic because of how they slow emergency vehicles.

"We have had extensive conversations as to why the police don't do more to control speeding throughout the city and how to make changes that result in speed reduction that don't rely on police enforcement," said Coalition of Asheville Neighborhoods Chair Amy Kemp.

Now city officials are trying a new type of engineered method to slow traffic. The city has contracted for $39,000 with Appalachian Paving to install "speed cushions" on Hazel Mill Road, a West Asheville street that carries around 5,000 vehicles with many traveling 10-15 mph above the 25 mph speed limit, according to a city spokeswoman.

"Speed cushions are different from speed humps in that they include wheel cutouts to allow large emergency vehicles to pass unaffected, while reducing passenger car speeding," spokeswoman Polly McDaniel said in a Nov. 7 release.

The cushions were slated for the portion of the road between North Louisiana and Patton avenues with construction expected to finish before the end of November.

According to McDaniel, neighbors advocated for the cushions that are designed to be comfortable for drivers going over them at 20-25 mph. They easily traversable by bicyclists and don't affect drainage and have "minimal impact on emergency response times," she said.

The installation of the cushions comes as the city reviews its traffic calming policy. The Hazel Mill project was paid for with voter-approved transportation bond money.

Neighborhood activists such as Kemp said they support the project.

"Given that so many people travel Hazel Mill Road, speed cushions make a lot of sense given that they allow emergency vehicles pass unaffected," the CAN chair said.

CAN Secretary Helen Hyatt called them a "great idea" and said her South French Broad Avenue neighborhood sees cars cutting through at high speeds from the four-lane Asheland Avenue. One couple's car was totaled after a vehicle took a turn too fast, Hyatt said.

"Judging by how many signs ... read, 'Slow down, we live here,' I would say it is a citywide issue," she said.