Although the speed limit on Grand River Avenue was increased last week after state officials said it was posted improperly, hundreds of students and residents who were ticketed on the section of road in question likely won’t see any reimbursement.
Last week, the Michigan Department of Transportation, or MDOT, increased the speed limit on a section of West Grand River Avenue that was posted at 25 mph, 10 mph less than what MDOT had recommended.
It would be almost impossible for drivers who were ticketed before last week’s change to get their money back, said John Bissell, a Lansing attorney who handles traffic law cases.
A refund likely only would be granted if a governmental body — such as the East Lansing City Council — voluntarily attempted to grant a refund to victims of what some have called a “speed trap.”
“Unless city council would independently take action to provide for a method of refund, I don’t see how a person who has plead responsible is going to be successful,” Bissell said.
“The chances are not very great.”
The issue between the city and MDOT fought its way through Michigan courts, until the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled that MDOT had the authority to set the limit on the grounds that it is a state road. Near that same time, a 2005 traffic control order obtained by The State News shows MDOT ordered the speed limit to be raised to 35 mph, but neither the city nor MDOT changed the signs.
East Lansing City Councilmember Kevin Beard — one of the two councilmembers who was not up for re-election Tuesday — said the thousands of tickets issued on the stretch of road should not be revisited, as drivers still were violating the posted speed.
“It may be a technicality, but that’s what was posted,” Beard said.
“I don’t think there is any reason to go back and visit all the tickets that have been issued during that time period.”
State Rep. Mark Meadows, D-East Lansing, who was East Lansing’s mayor at the time the order was issued, previously said the city made a side agreement with MDOT not to change the signs on the stretch of Grand River in exchange for raising speed limits on other streets.
Such an agreement might be viewed as legal in court, Bissell said, but he thinks the choice to leave the low speed is an unethical one.
“The various jurisdictions can probably work out agreements of what they will do,” Bissell said “Whether they ought to or whether it’s a good idea is something entirely different.”
Michigan State Police policy dictates the use of the 85th percentile rule: setting speed limits for which 85 percent of drivers naturally would drive.
This is one part of the criteria used to set speed limits, East Lansing Director of Public Works Todd Sneathen said, along with results from traffic and speed studies. East Lansing officials also survey the area to determine its residential and business traffic.
They do not, however, have the authority to set speed limits on state roads, he said.
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