Council to discuss lowering Grove Street speed limit to 30 mph

By LINDA MOSS
moss@montclairlocal.news

Following a fatal accident on the county road this summer, the Township Council will discuss lowering the speed limit on Grove Street to 30 mph at its first meeting in October. The limit is currently 35.

Alex Kent, the chair of the Montclair Pedestrian Safety Committee, is urging residents to attend the local governing body's conference meeting.

"On Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. the Montclair Town Council will be discussing a resolution to lower the speed limit on Grove Street to 30 mph," she wrote in a letter to Montclair Local. "The Council has already approved an ordinance to widen the median on Grove, which will cause motorists to slow down."

Kent's letter also made reference to the June 7 death of township resident Mary DeFillipis, 73, who sustained fatal injuries after being struck by a car at the intersection of Grove Street and Chester Road.

"In the first half of 2017, 21 pedestrians were hit and sent to the hospital by vehicles on Montclair roadways," Kent wrote.

"Grove Street had the most pedestrian crashes in town, including one fatality," she said. "Typically, Bloomfield Avenue is the most dangerous street in Montclair, but this year, Grove has had twice as many pedestrian crashes as Bloomfield Avenue."