An Act To Allow Municipalities To Set Speed Limits on Certain Roads
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 1329
Committee: Transportation
Sponsors: BROWNE, AYOTTE, CARTER, CEBRA, CLEARY, THOMAS
Amends: 29-A MRSA §2075

Legislative Document 
No. 1329 
H.P.937 
House of Representatives, March 12,2007 
An Act To Allow Municipalities To Set Speed Limits on Certain 
Roads 
Reference to the Committee on Transportation suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative BROWNE of Vassalboro. 
Cosponsored by Senator SA V AGE of Knox and 
Il/~ 
frl·11I~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: AYOTTE of Caswell, CARTER of Bethel, CEBRA of Naples, CLEARY of 
Houlton, CRA Y of Palmyra, THOMAS of Ripley. 
PnnteJ nn rt:'l:ydt=d paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 29-A MRSA §2075, sub-§3, ~, as amended by PL 2003, c. 92, §3, is 
further amended to read: 
E. Subject to the provisions of this paragraph, if it is a qtialif;'ing mtinicipalit)', set ~ 
speed limits limit on ~ qualifYing reads road. As tised in this paragraph, "qtialif;'ing 
mtinicipality" means a mtinieipalit)' that has a poptilation of 2,500 or more as 
meastired by the latest deeeHHial UHited States eenStis or that employ's a professional 
engineer lieensed in this State. As used in this paragraph, "qualifYing road" means a 
town way that is classified as local by the Department of Transportation in 
accordance with the federal functional classification system. 
If a qtialif;cing municipality decides to set ~ speed limits limit in accordance with this 
paragraph, the municipality shall provide written notice of that determination to the 
Commissioner of Transportation and shall set speed limits for all qtialif;cing roads in 
that mtinieipality. 
Unless otherwise approved as provided in paragraph D, ~ speed limits limit set by a 
municipality must be in 5-mile-per-hour increments within the following ranges: 
(1) From 20 to 25 miles per hour, inclusive, regarding roads in a business or 
residential district or a compact area, except that the lower limit may be set at 15 
miles per hour on roads on islands not accessible by road or dead end roads less 
than 114 mile in length; and 
(2) From 30 to 50 miles per hour, inclusive, regarding roads in all other areas. 
Prior to establishing a speed limit, the mtinieipality must perform a traffic 
.. investigation that reviews the faetors identified. in the applicable sections of the 
Mantial on Uniform Traffie Control Devices. The mtinicipal officers shall validate 
that speed limit in aceordanee with the procedtire for establishing municipal traffic 
ordinanees set forth in Title 30 A, section 3009, post standard speed limit signs in 
accordanee with the Mantial on Uniform Traffic Control Devices and provide written 
notice of that speed limit zone to the Commissioner of Transportation on forms 
approved by the Department of Transportation. 
The Department of Transportation may require a municipality with a population of 
5,000 or more as measured by the latest decennial United States census that has not 
provided written notice to the department that the municipality will set ~ speed lim-its 
limit on a qualifying road in accordance with this paragraph to provide the 
department with all data necessary to set such ~ speed lim-its limit. The nature, extent 
and form of that data must be acceptable to the department and may include, without 
limitation, the reason for the request, length and location of the proposed speed zone, 
road width, number of driveways in that zone, traffic volume, posted speed, 
prevailing speed as measured by radar, accident history and speed enforcement 
efforts; and 
SUMMARY 
This bill makes it easier for a municipality to set a speed limit on a local road and 
allows a small municipality to set such a limit.