SEQUIM — Neighbors and Sequim city officials seem to agree: There’s a speeding problem along West Sequim Bay Road.
The road that receives outgoing traffic from the Albert Haller Playfields and runs west into the city and east to John Wayne Marina, PNNL-Sequim and many residences.
It was targeted in recent months by city staff to gauge potential issues regarding vehicles going too fast.
Sequim Public Works Director Paul Bucich said during the Sept. 9 city council meeting that a traffic speed study was very revealing: “Both residents and those outside of the city have lead feet.”
Bucich wrote there is “a significant issue with drivers exceeding the speed limit along the entire corridor,” including the three study sites west of North Rhodefer Road on West Sequim Bay Road, east of North Rhodefer Road by Elk Loop Road and just west of Washington Harbor Road, according to city documents.
He wrote that all three locations showed speeding between 35 mph and 60 mph in the 20 mph zone at all hours of the day, including a vehicle (later identified as an unlicensed motorcycle) going 85-plus mph through the area at 1:30 a.m. Police have attempted to stop the rider before but were unable to because of state pursuit laws, staff report.
Going west along West Sequim Bay Road, the closest 35 mph sign to the 20 mph zone is at Washington Harbor Road, about half a mile away.
In his September report, Bucich said both sides of West Sequim Bay Road lack “end speed limit” signs for the 20 mph zone, which leads to confusion for required speed limits.
Nearby resident Maegan Koorn said the speeding is “horrible.”
“People will fly right by,” she said. “They use our cul-de-sac to zip around.”
Patty Baker, who has lived in the area since 1976, said the stretch has been bad for a long time.
“They’re going too fast, fast, fast,” she said. “And they know it’s a good spot to race too.”
Baker and her renters say it’s worse at night.
“I don’t know what’ll slow it down,” she said. “More police patrols might help.”
In April, Mayor Brandon Janisse reached out to owners of Sequim’s Little Explorers Early Learning Center on West Sequim Bay Road about safety concerns.
Helana Coddington, co-owner/director of Sequim’s Little Explorers, said she would like to see sidewalks installed along the road, an electronic flashing speed sign similar to what’s found across the city to deter speeding, holding more routine police patrols, and maintaining the Rhodefer Road intersection crosswalk to ensure it remains effective.
“The absence of sidewalks compels pedestrians to walk through our parking lot, which is not ideal and poses a safety risk,” she said.
“Constructing sidewalks would greatly improve pedestrian safety and provide a clear demarcation from vehicle traffic.”
Coddington added that it’s crucial the 20 mph speed limit be enforced, especially because families are walking in and out of the center.
Koorn had similar suggestions, hoping the city would build a sidewalk and add police patrols.
“(The speeding) is really bad,” she said.
Taking action
Following the speed study, the Sequim Police Department made 25 traffic stops on Aug. 20 and issued drivers warnings.
In a previous interview, Police Chief Mike Hill said they’ve increased traffic patrols in recent months across the city following a city survey where residents sought more speed enforcement.
City staff also received vehicle collision data for the area from 2013-2024, with 19 wrecks in the city limits — most at the intersection of West Sequim Bay Road and Washington Street.
Improvements in the area were prompted by city council member Kathy Downer, also an area resident, due to what she’s seen and heard from neighbors. City council members unanimously agreed in May to ask city staff for possible options to make the stretch of road safer.
Bucich has updated council members through the summer, saying in June that staff’s observations show people don’t have challenges crossing the crosswalk at Rhodefer Road and West Sequim Bay Road, and about 800 vehicles travel the stretch of road daily.
On Sept. 9, he said it was appropriate to keep the 20 mph zone by Sequim’s Little Explorers following a review of the area.
He reported in June that other zones with required 20 mph limits, other school zones, preschools and daycares in and around the city have proper signage and speed limits.
Because of the speeding concerns, city staff striped no-passing zones for both the westbound and eastbound lanes along a stretch of West Sequim Bay Road. The double lines now go east to right before Fair Weather Drive/Torres Court, about one-tenth of a mile away from Sequim’s Little Explorers.
Bucich said new signage was ordered for both West Sequim Bay Road and North Rhodefer Road and will be installed when they arrive. He added that the city can look in the future for ways to build sidewalks along West Sequim Bay Road’s north side, and add bike lanes if there are enough funds.
Coddington said city staff installed orange flags on the 20 mph signs in the spring, but her staff members have continued to witness drivers going faster than 20 mph. She said passing hasn’t been an issue on the roadway by her center, but due to the zone, there shouldn’t be passing at 20 mph.
“I strongly feel (an electronic) sign that shows the speed would help drivers slow down,” she said.
In an email reply, Bucich said city staff have requested two to four portable radar speed signs in the 2025 city budget.
“Those would be deployed in the city based on resident or business concerns over speeding,” he said.
“Our intention would be to use these portable radar feedback signs in this corridor as a reminder to slow down. By moving them around the city, we have the opportunity to have a greater overall impact on speeding in our community.
“We would bring them back to identified problem locations frequently as a regular reminder to obey the speed limits.”
Bucich said he’s found that method more effective than static signs because those tend to be ignored over time.
He added that the radar signs would be small enough for one person to move and mount them on sign poles, and they have two modes — visible indication of speed and stealth-mode where speed is tracked but not shown.
Bucich said that allows the city to “evaluate the effectiveness of the signs on speed modulation, (but) just because it’s not showing a speed doesn’t mean it isn’t tracking.”
Concerns about bicyclists was another topic among council members and residents.
Downer said on Sept. 9 she has encountered bicyclists four different times who do not look for vehicle traffic before going into the road.
“I’d recommend laying on your horn,” Bucich said. “I’d rather have them learn their lesson than get hit.”
With the area being a part of the Olympic Discovery Trail, Bucich said bicyclists should be aware there’s no dedicated bike lane for them coming down Rhodefer Road from East Washington Street.
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Matthew Nash is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. Reach him at matthew.nash@sequimgazette.com.
