Speed bumps and residential streets (Dallas, San Antonio: homes, neighborhoods, buy)

[thisguysa]

San Antonio seems to be very fond of using speed bumps (particularly the worst kind, the bolt on the road bumps) to discourage ANY through-traffic on non-major roads or residential roads. This only adds to the city's traffic problems as it funnels all the traffic in an area to the one or two major roads in the area. If you look at other cities, they do not do this, and certain 2 lane residential roads can reasonably carry a certain amount of traffic creating convenience for people and relieving congestion on more major roads.

Has anyone else noticed San Antonio's propensity to do this?

[sapphire]

Yes, and I hate it. One of the top 3 "MUST HAVES" when I moved to Dallas was a neighborhood with no speed bumps. I hate them. And I sure don't miss them.

[TXsurburbanmom]

Wow. We're begging for them on our street but the city won't let is have them. The way people speed down my residential street it's just a matter of time before they kill one of our kids. It's really made me rethink our decision to not buy in a gated neighborhood just to decrease the traffic. Although its mostly the people from that gated neighborhood who refuse to sit through a turn signal so instead cut through my neighborhood way over the speed limit. I'll gladly roll over those bumps if they'd just let us have them.

[JuanValdez]

You'd be amazed what cash can accomplish on residential streets.

[SATX56]

OP the speed bumps are used to cause drivers to reduce speed. Not to discourage them from using the roads. Trouble is that people avoiding main thoroughfares as well as others drive like maniacs through residential areas. Some of the resident drivers are guilty as well. We have probably the largest, best trained, best paid police department we've ever had. But, it is a rare occasion to see one in our neighborhood. In fact, I rarely see them making traffic stops anywhere. Speed bumps aren't the best speed deterrent but aside from some police presence it's all we have. I've gotten used to driving over the speed bumps. I don't like them but I prefer them to dead children (if they in fact prevent even one death).

I think the humped asphalt is a better speed deterrent but it doesn't hold up like the bolted down rubber type. Keep after your City Council man/woman/deadbeat if you want one in your hood. Don't expect any huge difference. They treat my daughters street like a Nascar track. If they run over a child someone will likely beat them senseless.

[OzzyRules]

If there is a speed bump there, that means there was usually speeding problem. I always see jerks in those big pickup trucks bypassing traffic lights and speeding through residential neighborhoods to make up for their precious lost time.

[sapphire]

In San Antonio, your kids are safer in the street than on the sidewalk. That's a sad drunk driving reference. It's a problem here, too but just like everything else, do we want to wrap our kids in bubble wrap and sit them on the couch or what? Because the drunks also drive straight into homes these days. The speed bumps in Silver Creek were on the main road in and out and people flew over them, and I can't count the number of times I was almost rear-ended because I actually slowed down going over them. People don't seem to care and you have to teach your kids to be aware no matter what.

[Camper1]

Moderator cut: The post you replied to was deleted

I think the point was missed. If the cars were driving the appropriate rate of speed, there wouldn't be a need for speed bumps.

I wish we had them on our streets, with big flashing signs that say ' speed bump ahead"!!

[SnappyBob]

I hate speed bumps. They are hard on suspensions and brakes and do not cause people to drive the speed limit. They only cause them to slow down to a crawl while they are going over this obstacle in the road and then they speed up between speed bumps. Then you have others who have figured out that if you go over them at around 10 mph over the speed limit (usually 40 mph) they tend to not be so bad. They tried to put them up on the main through way into our neighborhood but were defeated. Instead they put up a constable from time to time and place to place. Our though way is now known has a bad place to speed but you can drive down it at the speed limit with no problem.

[Bo]

In my neighborhood, it seems like half of the people drive too fast and hate the idea of speed bumps, while the other half hate that their neighbors drive too fast and want speed bumps to slow them down!

The speed bump proponents usually prevail, because they're the squeaky wheel.