Trempealeau board approves extending reduced speed limit on Highway K

In an effort to improve road safety, the area where the speed limit drops from 55 to 40 miles per hour coming into Trempealeau on County Highway K will be extended slightly further to the village limits.

The change in question affects a segment about three-tenths of a mile at the village’s northeast boundary on County Road K. Currently, the speed limit drops from 55 to 40 right near North Forest Drive where the Pinewood Court mobile home park begins. 

However, that 40-mph speed zone does not reach all the way to the village boundary, and Village Administrator/Finance Director Isaac Pooler noted at last Thursday’s board meeting that there had been complaints from residents about the speed of drivers in that area. The resolution extends the 40-mph zone just past the Pinewood Court storage units that are north of the mobile home park.

“In the last year, we did have residents from the mobile home court complaining about the speeding issues along that corridor,” Pooler said. “So, this would help alleviate that.”

The resolution, which was unanimously approved by the village board at Thursday’s meeting, states “current and future residential development and increased pedestrian and vehicular activity along the affected segment of County Highway K have prompted safety concerns” and goes on to say “extending the existing 40 mph speed zone to the northern boundary of the Village would promote traffic calming, improve safety for residents, and better reflect the residential character of the area.”

Since the Trempealeau County Highway Department already gave the stamp of approval to the change, the speed limit reduction in the affected segment will go into effect as soon as the signs can be moved.

Elsewhere on the agenda, the village board elected to award the bid for a Spring Street project to Pavement Consulting Services, LLC out of Eau Claire.

The road construction project will consist of asphalt paving and curb and gutter work on the segment of Spring Street between First Street and Second Street. The bid was awarded to Pavement Consulting Services in the amount of $61,322. Of that total, $25,000 will be covered by the Local Roads Improvement Program (LRIP) — a Wisconsin Department of Transportation assistance program.