EAST GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — City leaders in East Grand Rapids are considering changes that could make it easier and faster for neighbors to get speed cushions installed on their streets.
Speed cushions are vertical speed control elements designed to slow traffic while still allowing emergency and service vehicles to pass through. They are installed on residential local streets with 25 mph speed limits where speeding has been verified.
The city's Traffic Calming Policy — which governs how neighbors can request speed-reducing measures — was last updated in December 2020. Since then, only two street segments in East Grand Rapids have qualified for speed cushions: Woodlawn Avenue from the south city limit to Maplewood, and Elmwood Drive from Laurel Avenue to Eastlawn Avenue.
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Under the current policy, the process for installing speed cushions requires four speed studies conducted over the course of up to a year, along with approval from the City Commission.
The proposed amendment would reduce the number of required speed studies from four to two for streets where the 85th percentile speed — the speed at which 85% of drivers are traveling — exceeds 5 mph over the posted speed limit. It would also remove the need for City Commission approval, allowing the Director of Public Works to authorize installations instead.
The proposal also creates an alternative path for streets that do not qualify based on speed study results. Under that option, neighbors could still pursue speed cushion installation if at least 80% of households on the affected block sign a petition in support. That request would also be decided by the Director of Public Works rather than the full City Commission. However, streets that qualify through the speed study process would receive priority over those that go through the 80% petition route.
City officials say the goal is to make the process more efficient — potentially cutting the timeline from up to a year to just a few months. Speed cushions are considered a relatively low-cost traffic calming option. Installations would still be subject to available budget funds. Projects that cannot be funded in a given fiscal year would be placed in a queue and carried over to the following year or years.
East Grand Rapids neighbor Jerry Anderson says traffic safety is a top concern in the community.
"I think we're a community that cares deeply about safety. In my mind, the safety that we're most concerned with is pedestrian safety," Anderson said.
Anderson cited two key issues he sees on local streets.
"There are two important safety concerns in East Grand Rapids. One is distracted driving, and that includes people running through like crosswalks," he said. "And the second is how it pertains to E-scooters."
Anderson, who says he previously lived on Oakwood — a street where he says drivers travel at high speeds — believes neighbors are best positioned to know what their streets need.
"I think the people who live on a street have the best understanding of the safety needs of that particular block," he said.
He added that speed cushions could have a broader impact on driver behavior.
"Maybe it will get people who are on those streets to pay closer attention to their driving and less attention to distractions, and that should make pedestrians more safe at the same time," Anderson said.
The East Grand Rapids City Commission is set to consider the policy amendment at its meeting Monday night at the Community Center.
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