Put simply, people speed is the pace at which cars and trucks can move safely among pedestrians, toddlers, pick-up ball players, bicyclists, tricyclists, dogs, squirrels, lemonade stands.

When you drive at people speed, you're respecting your neighbors and protecting your community. By driving at a neighborhood's posted speed limit - or less than that, optimally - you are setting an example to other drivers, and proving that people, not machines, determine the quality of life in our town.

• walking pace - 3 to 5 miles an hour, depending on the intensity of your conversation.
• 10 mph for a kid cycling to school, or 20 mph for an earnest bike commuter.
• a great-grandmother's patient navigation to a mail box.
• the heart-stopping blur of a child dashing into the road.
• stopping - truly stopping - at those octagonal red signs, then triple-checking for kids, bikes and runaway pets before cautiously regaining speed.
• 15 miles an hour (at most) near schools during school hours.

Our new bumper sticker Want a copy?

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