Toledo Approves Traffic Calming Resolution

The Toledo City Council has approved a new traffic calming ordinance aimed at slowing drivers on neighborhood streets and giving residents a formal path to request speed humps and other safety measures.

On a 4–2 vote, the council adopted Ordinance 435, creating a new section of city code (Toledo Municipal Code 10.30) that lays out how traffic calming projects can be proposed, reviewed, installed, and, if needed, removed.

City Planner Justin Peterson described the package as a flexible, “quick-build” approach focused on local residential streets, not Business Highway 20 or other major arterials.

“This is really focused on those local streets,” Peterson told the council. “They’re not meant to be these large infrastructure projects that cost a ton of money or cost a ton of money to remove.”

Under the new rules, residents living on a street with speeding or cut‑through traffic concerns will be able to petition the city for traffic calming. The ordinance defines “resident” broadly to include both homeowners and renters.

Key elements of the new program include:

• Tools: Public Works can consider a menu of options such as speed humps, speed cushions, curb extensions, plastic bollards and other quick-build features designed to slow traffic and shorten crossing distances for pedestrians.

• Process: Once a petition meets the signature threshold, the request goes to the Planning Commission for review and a decision. Public Works can also initiate projects on its own where staff see recurring problems.

• Petition threshold: Residents will generally need signatures from 51% of households on the affected street or at least 10 residents, whichever is easier to reach, to move a proposal forward.

• Appeals and review: Neighbors who object will have an appeal path to the City Council, and the city can review and even remove a device after it has been in place if it isn’t working as intended.

Peterson said the goal was to balance public involvement with a process that’s not impossible to use. “It’s supposed to be kind of grassroots funded,” he said, adding that council could later choose to put city money toward some projects if it wishes. “This creates also the public process to implement these.”

Who pays – residents or the city?

Much of the council’s discussion centered on cost and how high to set the bar for neighborhood support. Councilor Stu Strom questioned whether the process would be too cumbersome or expensive for ordinary residents.

“I just didn’t think that passing something that’s very cumbersome to the citizenry was wise,” he said warning that if neighbors must shoulder the full bill, “it probably won’t happen.”

Peterson and City Manager Rich Hubner clarified that the ordinance is written so applicants can pay for devices, but the council can also decide during the budget process to fund some or all of a project if it believes the benefit is citywide.

Mayor Tracy Mix noted the ordinance does not force residents to pay in every case.

“It does say that there is an ability for the city council to pay for it,” she said. “We’ve got to start somewhere. I think that they have done a lot of work on this. Try it until you find something wrong, maybe.”

Councilor Andrew Keating said he views the ordinance as creating an option for neighborhoods, not a mandate.

“This is something that gives us a process that is available to people in our community, available to our city if it’s needed, if it’s desired,” Keating said. “They’re not required to go through a cumbersome process. They can choose to if they feel it’s worth it for what they want.”

A resident-driven push

The idea for a local traffic calming program grew out of resident complaints about speeding, including on at least one street where only one side can be parked and children play in the roadway.

Councilors and staff noted that Councilor Riley originally came forward as a resident asking the city to look at ways to slow traffic in his neighborhood. He later joined the Planning Commission, helped develop the ordinance language, and has now helped vote it into law from the council dais.

Mayor Mix disclosed on the record that she had participated in Planning Commission discussions on the topic before becoming mayor and said it had been “interesting to see it all created” and refined over time.

What comes next

With Ordinance 435 adopted, city staff will finalize procedures and forms for residents who want to petition for traffic calming on their street. Public Works will also be able to identify candidate locations where speeding or crash data justify a project.

Councilors emphasized that the ordinance can be revisited if it proves too hard to use or if costs become a barrier. The new traffic calming rules apply only to local city streets. Larger projects or changes on Business Highway 20 and other arterial roads will still be handled through the city’s transportation system planning process and separate funding channels.