About 60 residents of Sligo Road in North Yarmouth have signed a letter urging the town to reduce the speed limit on a section of that road to 35 mph, 10 mph slower than the current posted speed. They argue that 45 mph is dangerous and poses a hazard to children in the neighborhood, and pedestrians and cyclists who use the road.

The Maine Department of Transportation is responsible for setting the speed there, according to Town Manager Diane Barnes. The petitioners are particularly concerned with the strip of Sligo Road between Route 9 and house No. 605, according to a letter they sent to the Select Board and town manager dated Aug. 6.

Until recently, the speed of the road was 35 miles an hour, but “even (at 35 miles an hour) the majority of cars speed along the stretch that includes several hills that ‘blind’ drivers to the oncoming users (other cars, pedestrians, runners, bicyclists) as well as a sharp curve near house No. 823,” wrote the petitioners.

This spring, complaints about speeding prompted the town to ask the county for more speed monitoring to ensure better compliance with the posted speed limit.

“It was discovered that the posted speed limit, the sign, was incorrect versus what the state had set as the speed limit for the road,” explained Barnes at the most recent North Yarmouth Select Board meeting.

North Yarmouth Town Manager Diane Barnes has asked the Public Works Department to investigate traffic-calming measures for a section of Sligo Road, where residents have petitioned to have the speed limit reduced, a process that requires state oversight. File photo / The Forecaster

To comply with the limit set by the state, the town increased the speed limit to 45. Barnes said that since the increase was implemented, the town has asked the state to conduct a speed study on the road, which could potentially prompt the Maine DOT to lower the limit. She said that getting the speed study completed could take up to a year.

In the meantime, the town has put up a caution sign advising people to slow down to 35 miles per hour at one section of the road around a curve, according to Barnes, but the sign only serves as a suggestion.

Amy Eshoo of Sligo Road told the Select Board that she and other residents have additional questions they want answered by the Maine DOT. For example, they want to know when the 45 mph speed limit was set and when the road was deemed “rural.”

She said there’s been an increase in families and housing along the road, indicating that “rural” may no longer be the right designation.

“We witness speeding every day,” she said, also noting the lack of shoulders, sidewalks or bike lanes on that section of road.

Evan Stonebreaker said he’s concerned for his children’s safety when they play outside and asked if it would be possible to get a “children at play” sign for the road.

Barnes said she would check to see if there was any sort of traffic-calming measure the town’s Public Works Department could undertake.

“It’s just incredibly dangerous and horribly frustrating as a parent. Somebody’s going to die,” said Stonebreaker.