Regina school zone speed limits going down to 30 km/h this September

The City of Regina has voted to lower the speed limit in school zones to 30 kilometres per hour, effective September 1.

City council voted to lower the limit at Monday's city council meeting. The speed limit will be in effect seven days a week, but the hours will also be adjusted to be in effect from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

"Playgrounds are used 365 days a year. They are schools with playground equipment. Kids go there after school, they go there before school, on Saturdays, on Sundays, so it makes sense that this motion is in place," said Ward 7 councillor Sharron Bryce.

School zones hours are currently in effect from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Signage will go up before the new limits go into effect.

Regina Mayor Michael Fougere said it simply boils down to 30 kilometres an hour being safer than 40.

"We're talking about the most vulnerable people. These are children going to and from school," he told CBC Radio's The Morning Edition on Tuesday.

"I think that slowing down for a few moments throughout the day is not too much to ask to make those areas safer."

As for whether or not the reduced speed limit can be considered a cash grab, Fougere said: "If you don't break the law, you don't have to pay a fine."

Ward 10 councillor Jerry Flegel was one voice of dissent during the school zone speed limit debate.

The current speed limit of 40 kilometres is not the big safety concern in school zones, he argued.

"If there was an accident at 40 kilometers per hour, we would have heard about it," Flegel said. 

"Nobody can produce accident reports at 30 or 40 [km/h]. We're going to be uplifting, uprooting the whole ship."

Ward 8 councillor Mike O'Donnell said the lowered limit will only add five seconds to someone's current commute. 

"It's consistent with what other cities are doing across Western Canada," O'Donnell said.