Town Board approves lower speed limit on road passing GCC
Get ready to drive slower on Assemblyman R. Stephen Hawley Drive.
The Town of Batavia board approved a resolution Wednesday asking for a speed-limit reduction on the road that passes between Genesee Community College and the new Med-Tech Center.
The entire length of Hawley Drive will see a lower speed limit, if the proposal is approved by the County Highway Department and the Department of Transportation.
Directly between the college campus and the new facility, the speed limit will drop from 45 to 30 mph. From Bank Street Road to the college, the speed limit could be lowered from 55 to 40 mph.
The change was made at the request of GCC.
In a letter to the board, Kevin Hamilton, VP of Finance and Operations, said increased enrollment, the new nursing program at the Med-Tech Center, and more patients from UMMC going to the facility will be an increase in traffic.
The school is also concerned about students walking from the campus, across the road, to the center.
"Our overall goal is safety awareness and accident prevention to ultimately improve safety for all those who are driving, bicycling or walking near our college community," Hamilton wrote.
A letter to the board from Sheriff Gary Maha said the Genesee County Traffic Safety Board discussed the matter at its June 17 meeting and concluded that no new crosswalks or sidewalks were needed immediately, but a reduction in the speed limit might be advisable.
The town board recommended the speed-limit reduction in a unanimous vote.
