Erath getting 14 ‘speed cushions’ to help slow down speeders

ERATH - The town of Erath has a speeding problem, and it may have found a solution that does not involve giving speeding tickets.
At Monday night’s monthly meeting, the aldermen approved buying $13,000 worth of “speed cushions” and signs to help slow down traffic on certain streets in Erath.
Speed cushions are larger than speed bumps, explained Erath Mayor Taylor Mencacci. They are around seven feet long and approximately three feet wide. The height is three inches high.
Speed cushions are prefabricated rubber constructed across the width of the roadway. Speed cushions are traffic calming devices intended to slow traffic speeds on low volume, low-speed roads. In addition, this device allows larger vehicles, especially fire trucks, to straddle them without significantly slowing down.
The town will order them and have them installed on three roads where speeding is a problem, Mencacci added. They will be placed every 600 feet on these roads.
The roads are North Broadway, North Severin Street, and South Hill Street (behind Erath High and Erath Middle School).
“These are our hot spots,” the Mayor added.
There will be six-speed cushions on North Broadway, four on South Hill Street, and six on North Severin Street. The town also has to buy signs to go with the speed cushions. The signs will be placed before each speed cushion.
The 14-speed cushions cost around $850 each, and the signs will be another $1,000 bringing the total to $13,000
“This will be a good start. We will see how it goes,” the Mayor added.
Erath Police Chief Anna LaPointe helped locate the correct speed cushions. She is hoping that the speed cushions reduce traffic speed to around 20 to 25 miles per hour, which is the speed limit on the three roads.
“They have to slow down to get on it and slow down when they travel off of it,” said LaPointe.
For years, the Chief has put patrol cars on these three streets to catch speeders. It works while the patrol car is there, but speeding continues when the police vehicle leaves.
Mencacci got his first taste of speeders when he was involved with the construction of LaHasky Park, located on North Broadway. He said it was not uncommon to see vehicles traveling 45 miles per hour in a 25-mile per hour zone.
The Chief said another problem is speeders behind Erath High and Erath Middle schools. Vehicles, leaving or arriving at the schools, speed at the same time students are walking to and from school. The speed zone is 15 miles per hour on Hill Street.
“It has been a long time coming,” she said. “I think it will help a lot.”