Surfside Beach adds permanent radar speed signs to reduce speeding on residential streets

New portable radar speed signs were added along a Surfside Beach street in response to residents’ concerns about speeding in town.

Two permanent radar speed signs were added on 16th Avenue North, and two more signs will be installed on 10th Avenue South soon, a Facebook post Saturday by the Surfside Beach Police Department said.

The signs were installed after residents expressed concerns about speeding along the town’s residential roads, the Facebook post said. Radar speed signs were installed earlier by Police Chief Kenneth Hofmann, and residents reported that they had been effective in slowing drivers, according to police. So the town decided to make them permanent.

The signs are funded through accommodations tax funds and will be installed on roads that see higher traffic during the tourist season, the social media post said.

In May, town leaders decided to lower the speed limit along a two-block stretch of Ocean Boulevard from 25 mph to 10 mph.

The decision to reduce the speed limit in Surfside’s entertainment district was based on officials’ efforts to balance Surfside’s tourism with safety needs of residents.

This story was originally published January 14, 2023 at 11:32 AM.