Speeders will soon lose the excuse that they didn’t know the speed limit changed at the Watonga city limits.
City council approved December 19 the purchase of solar power radar signs that flash the approaching vehicle’s speed. The signs are usually color coded so that if the speed is under the posted limit, the display is green. If the speed is over the limit, the display is red.
One sign will be permanently placed at each of the city limits in all four directions. Two more are modular and portable. The portable signs will be used in areas of high traffic such as construction zones or school crossings. None of the signs have photo capability, so there won’t be any capture of the tag numbers on cars driven by scofflaws.
The permanent signage costs some $16,657. Another $8182 will go for the movable signs and additional batteries.
“If we put them up, we need to be sure they continue to work properly,” council member Ryan Bruner said.
There was no word on when the signage would be delivered and installed. However, City Manager Karrie Little noted that the first vehicle the city has leased for its fleet arrived in mid-December. The SUV was designated for use by the code enforcement and animal control officers. The city is expecting delivery of another six vehicles during the year as the beginning of a phase out of an owned fleet and a phase in of the leased fleet of passenger vehicles. Some of the city’s fleet is currently more than 40 years old. The lease company will continually assess the leased fleet cars for mileage and trade value. When the city can replace the existing lease cars for newer models without a cost increase, it has the option to do so.