Route 111 is a throughway. That’s why it’s called Carl Broggi Highway. The speed limit is 50- 55 through most of it, offering a quick commuter path between York County’s shiretown of Alfred and the service center of Biddeford. As such, every effort should be made to allow people to travel unimpeded at high speeds on this road, since that is its intended purpose.

Safety is always a concern, however, and four recent proposals would take different approaches to that end. The intersections of Hill Road, Mountain and New roads, and Kennebunk Road are all legitimate sites for consideration of traffic changes. But while we favor these proposals, it seems the fourth would not be as good an idea.  

On Monday, a representative of the Kate’s Butter project convinced the Arundel selectmen to submit a request to the Department of Transportation for a lower speed limit near the site of their new agritourism facility, which is located not far from the Biddeford/Arundel line. Their argument is that lowering it from 50 to 40 mph might help to avert accidents when large delivery trucks are pulling in and out of the facility, which has yet to be completed.

It’s noble that the Kate’s Butter folks are trying to look out for the little guy who might be speeding down Route 111, as so many people do, and have the misfortune of slamming into one of their big trucks. But lowering the speed limit at the butter facility would set a precedent that shouldn’t be set.

Route 111 has many large businesses lining it, many of which have large trucks pulling in and out, from the George Roberts facility to landscaping businesses and gas stations. The route is a highway, not a downtown business district, and if every business with truck deliveries wanted a lower speed limit, it would cease to be a highway.

The lowered speed limit also takes away the highway aspect of this stretch of road, and that wasn’t part of the deal when the plans for Kate’s Butter were discussed, as Arundel resident Diane Robbins noted.

The only option that would truly work here would be a turning lane near the facility’s entrance, which would give motorists space to go around vehicles that are pulling in or out. But it’s probably not going to have enough traffic to warrant such an improvement. It’s hard to say, since the business isn’t even open yet.

While we’d discourage the DOT from approving this speed limit reduction, we do feel the DOT’s other plans for Route 111 have merit.

The nearby Hill Road intersection in Arundel, a dangerous turn-off that connects Route 111 with Route 35 in Goodwin’s Mills, does have enough traffic to warrant a turning lane, and one is planned there to improve the line of sight and help avert accidents. The accident rate for the Hill Road intersection met the DOT threshold for the improvement in 2011, with 11 reportable accidents over the previous three years.

The K-shaped intersection of New Road and Mountain Road with Route 111 is also under consideration by the DOT for simplification, with extension of the turning lane up to Drew’s Mills Road. This would be a great improvement, as turning lanes are the best way to keep the route safe and clear for quick travel. This intersection is also messy, with strange angles that can make it hard for motorists to see and be seen.

Some residents, during the public hearings for Hill Road improvements last year, were even pushing for a traffic signal there, but the traffic count numbers don’t yet warrant it, according to the DOT.

Further down the line, however, in Alfred, the threshold has apparently been met for a new traffic light at the intersection of Route 111 and Kennebunk Road, which allows access to York County Court House and post office. The speed limit is already 35 in this area, toward the end of the highway, and it seems this light is needed to allow people to get out onto the route efficiently and safely. This intersection is widely used and there was an accident there in the 1990s, when a fire truck was totaled by a Route 111 traveler.

The more traffic lights we install, however, the more bogged down Route 111 will become, so we’d urge the DOT to consider them only as a last resort. High-speed areas need to remain high speed or Route 111 will become obsolete as a commuter throughway, pushing more people to the Maine Turnpike, which does not have a convenient exit to Sanford.

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Today’s editorial was written by Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski on behalf of the Journal Tribune Editorial Board. Questions? Comments? Contact Kristen by calling 282-1535, Ext. 322, or via email at kristenm@journaltribune.com.