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Excessive speed and street racing: Phoenix residents beg for help

Homeowners on 19th Avenue, south of Dobbins Road say the problem has increased since 2020.

PHOENIX — Speeding and racing near South Mountain is a growing problem, residents in one Phoenix neighborhood said.

“We often get drag racers, or even single cars that go extremely fast,” said Mitch Steidl. “It’s really gotten much worse since COVID.”

Steidl has lived in the community on 19th Avenue south of Dobbins Road since 2008. During the last three years, he and other residents have pushed for safety measures on this stretch of road.

“This happens pretty much all the time, but especially on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturday evenings,” said Muffy Bennett. “It’s no longer a quiet neighborhood.”

In 2021, a group of residents and HOA members took their concerns to the City of Phoenix and the city police department. After a meeting, the Street Transportation Department evaluated the area and conducted a speed survey.

“The speed survey on face value looked pretty good,” Steidl said. “However, there were outliers.”

The survey found that on average, the speed on the 25mph road, was 30.

But in a 24-hour time frame, 24 vehicles were driven twice the legal limit. Of those, two were going 70mph, and one more than 80mph.

“It’s a big wide street. It’s downhill. It’s easy to go fast. It seems like it’s safe. Clearly, it’s not. A man died last week,” Steidl said.

On February 22, 58-year-old Forrest Wade was killed in a car crash on 19th and Olney avenues. Police said speeding may have been a factor.

That same intersection was also the scene of another two-vehicle crash in March 2022.

Credit: Mith Steidl

“I think it’s about time ... that they pay attention to us and actually do something about this,” Bennett said.

Multiple speed studies have reportedly been conducted in the area during the last two years, according to a statement from the Phoenix Street Transportation Department.

“The department anticipates that it will be ready to share options for speed mitigation with those residents this spring,” a department spokesperson said.

The department could not provide a specific timeline of when those options would be ready, how much they will cost, and if Phoenix would fund them.

There’s speeding in my community, what can I do?

Phoenix has options for residents to pursue when it comes to curbing excessive speeders.

Two options are speed humps and speed cushions. The process to obtain either must be resident-driven, involving community support.

Residents must obtain support from at least 70% of residents in the affected area and must obtain support from every resident whose home is within 100 feet of a proposed speed hump or speed cushion.

Residents must also pay a portion of the cost to install them depending on several factors, like documented average speed after a traffic study. The cost for either can range from $100 to $2,800.

More details on the options can be found here.

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