THE ISSUE: The default speed limit in Medford has been reduced from 30 mph to 25 for all city streets.

WHY IT MATTERS: The speed limits on city-owned streets in Medford have been reduced unless specifically posted otherwise. Police will now begin to enforce this new policy city-wide, and drivers should make themselves aware of the change to avoid being ticketed.

The speed limit for all city streets has been reduced from 30 miles per hour to 25 (unless otherwise posted), after a resolution started by City Council Vice President Michael Marks passed successfully through the city council and the city’s traffic commission.

The resolution will not affect state-owned roads, such as Routes 38 and 16, or areas already pre-determined by the city as "safety zones," such as the areas in front of schools, churches, etc., where the speed limit is 20 miles per hour.

Marks said he was driven to propose the resolution because of the high amount of traffic that flows through Medford and because of concerns he often hears about the safety of the roads for pedestrians.

But does reducing the speed limit by five miles per hour make a difference?

"It actually does," Marks said. "Five miles per hour makes a huge difference for reaction time and it makes our streets a lot safer for crossing, driving, walking and bicycling. There’s plenty of facts out there that the five mile difference does save lives and it does give pedestrians and drivers an ability to react quicker and make better decisions."

Medford police lietenant Paul Covino agrees.

"Even if you're only going three miles an hour over the speed limit, when you're in a tightly-congested street, that three miles an hour, when you convert it to feet per second when it comes to stopping time, makes the difference between hitting that little kid that comes out and not hitting that little kid," Covino said.

The speed limit change is already official, having passed all the necessary steps in the city’s government. The only thing left is to make people aware of the change, post new signage and begin to enforce the new law. The latter step of which, Marks sees as another issue to overcome.

"We’re at an all-time low in the police department. The traffic division consists of just a few members of the police department," he said. "In the chief’s opinion, without the proper staffing levels, it’s going to be difficult to do the consistent enforcement that this would require. We can implement all the rules and regulations, but without the proper enforcement, we’re going to be at the same place we were before."

Covino said that there are about 10 police personnel who regularly work in traffic enforcement, and agreed that more police forces would certainly help to enforce the new law.