Worcester lowers speed limit after crashes involving pedestrians

The Worcester City Council voted to lower the speed limit to 25 miles per hour citywide, in the wake of multiple crashes that injured or killed young pedestrians.

“This is long overdue, and a first step, one of many, that we need to take,” one Worcester resident said during a City Council meeting on Tuesday.

The vote also established several “safety zones” around the city where the speed limit will be lowered to 20 miles an hour.

Three recent traffic accidents in Worcester involving children, in addition to more than 90 pedestrian-involved crashes in 2024, prompted city officials to declare a “Road Safety and Traffic Violence Crisis” in July.

A car struck and killed a 13-year-old girl crossing the street in July. In June, a toddler was struck by a car and was sent to the hospital for head injuries. Also in June, a car hit another 13-year-old while she crossed the street. She sustained serious injuries.

Sarah Stewart, the Minister of the First Unitarian Church in Worcester, was one of several members of the public who voiced support for the speed limit reduction during Tuesday’s meeting.

“I have parishioners who come to my church by foot, on the bus, in wheelchairs, and we have many children involved in the church,” she said. “These are all people who are put at risk by high speed and dangerous driving in the city. I want them all to be safe and treated as fair users of the city’s roads and sidewalks.”

Some residents raised concerns about the measure, questioning the ability of police to enforce the new limit and the effectiveness of lowering the speed limit. One resident said lowering the speed limit will divert traffic to side streets.

“You’re going to move the problem to the communities,” he said.

Councilor-at-large Khrystian King supported lowering the speed limit, calling the vote a “step in the right direction.”

“It’s not going to be easy for folks. I mean, everyone drives at some point or another over the speed limit. But this will help us do better,” Councilor King said.

The decision from the City Council said the speed limits would go into place once signs are erected.