High speeds increase the risk of fatal crashes, especially for pedestrians.
High speed arterials also amplify traffic noise, making it unpleasant to be near the street. The net result is that high arterial speeds compromise pedestrian safety and discourage walking. P ossible Solutions Vehicle speed on arterial streets can be reduced in a number of ways. The simplest engineering approach is to reduce the number of through lanes in each direction. This configuration also provides opportunities for installing bike lanes in each direction at the edge of the roadway.