The third time may be a charm as the Windham Town Council tries to lower the speed limit along a busy stretch of Route 202.

Town Manager Tony Plante was informed last week that Brian Keezer, Maine Department of Transportation regional traffic engineer, is recommending to Commissioner David Cole that the speed limit along Route 202 from Swett Road to Pope Road be reduced from 50 mph to 45 mph. Councilors requested the change following their May 27 meeting.

If Cole approves the request, the third made by Windham in the last seven years, it will be forwarded to the Maine State Police, who have final say on speed limit changes. The process will take 30 to 60 days to complete, Assistant Town Manager Nancy Johnston told the Town Council Tuesday night.

The recommendation to lower the speed limit was made after engineers conducted a study on a number of factors related to the road, including number of intersections and access points, Keezer said. They also record a sample of speeds on the road, and travel the road themselves.

“We get a feel for what’s a comfortable pace through there,” Keezer said.

While any reduction is welcomed along the heavily trafficked road, Windham Police Chief Richard Lewsen Jr. said Wednesday, the state should seriously consider lowering the speed limit more than the recommended 5 mph.

The roughly half-mile stretch draws a large number of pedestrians due to its proximity to Windham High School and the town’s skate park, Lewsen said, and walkers along the road are in danger of being hit by vehicles. The Windham Public Safety also sits along that stretch, and it is difficult for emergency vehicles to enter a road where vehicles are traveling at high speeds, he said.

“I think it would be appropriate to make it 35 at least up to the skate park,” Lewsen said.

The area under consideration also leads directly into a school zone. People traveling north along Route 202 now have to go from a 50 mph zone directly to a 15 mph zone. The situation would not be made any better if the zone is changed to 45 mph, Lewsen said.

“Somebody has to do some serious braking,” he said.

The town should call for a public hearing on the matter to give residents an opportunity to tell state transportation officials directly about the problems facing that section of Route 202, Lewsen said.

“It can all be out in the open,” he said.

The town has been trying for years to get the speed limit changed along that section of Route 202.

The first request, made in January 2001, was rejected by the Dept. of Transportation in March 2002. The Town Council asked again in October 2006. Although a state traffic engineer apparently recommended at that time to lower the speed limit to 45 mph, the plan was not finalized.