SOUTH HADLEY — In an effort to slow down cars speeding along thickly settled residential roads, South Hadley joins other Hampshire County cities and towns in lowering the statutory speed limit on roads from 30 mph to 25 mph.

The speed limit change only impacts roads in thickly settled residential areas and business districts without a posted speed sign. State laws define thickly settled districts as any road where residential units are less than 200 feet apart for at least a quarter of a mile. Any other streets with posted speed limits, as well as state highways or routes, will remain unchanged.

In May, Town Meeting adopted a Massachusetts General Law that permits towns to decrease speed limits on these roads without the state Department of Transportation’s long approval process. Belchertown also accepted the same law at the end of May during their Town Meeting, joining Northampton, Hadley and Amherst. Easthampton considered embracing the regulation, but the City Council was divided over its effectiveness in slowing down drivers. 

“Thank you to Town Meeting members for overwhelmingly supporting a policy that will promote safe driving, reducing crashes, and creating safer, more accessible roads for everyone” South Hadley Town Administrator Lisa Wong stated in a news release.

New signage along all roads entering South Hadley from neighboring communities will inform incoming drivers of the change in statutory speed limits. Human Resource Director Chuck Romboletti said that the first phase of installations includes 11 signs on roads leading into town, specifically from Holyoke, Chicopee, Granby, and Hadley. A second round of signs will be posted along South Hadley’s business districts.

According to a statement from the South Hadley Police Department, the proposal to alter statutory speed limits originated from the increased number of crashes in South Hadley. In 2024, 195 more vehicle crashes were documented than the previous year. During Town Meeting, Gundersen added that the Traffic Review Committee analyzed speed data gathered from speed boards and GPS applications such as Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. 

“This new speed limit not only helps create safer streets for everyone, but also supports a more efficient use of our department’s time and resources,” South Hadley Police Chief Jennifer Gundersen wrote. “Our officers spend a significant amount of time addressing speeding complaints and conducting traffic stops. Reducing the default speed limit is a practical way to encourage safer driving habits without needing constant enforcement.”

Gundersen has previously raised concerns about increased speeding in a guest column to the Gazette, where she pointed to the uptick in vehicles on the road and a false sense of safety behind the wheel as some of the causes behind increased crashes.

Police chiefs have previously spoken to the Gazette about the difficulty of regulating speeding vehicles, since officers cannot be everywhere at once. While traffic calming infrastructure, like speed humps, narrowing roads and wider sidewalks, are effective at slowing down drivers, they are expensive. This law allows for a sweeping change in speed limits without that process, adding one more tool to traffic enforcers’ tool box.

“The adoption of this law acts allows municipalities to act more quickly and efficiently, and with consistency town wide ,” Romboletti said during Town Meeting. “It complements other tools in the toolbox to increase safety, and when taken together, form a comprehensive approach to enhancing safety.”

Emilee Klein can be reached at eklein@gazettenet.com.