By Nick P. Angelides,Special to the Sun Journal

SABATTUS – Two Sabattus roads will soon have “Children at Play” signs due to speeding traffic and population growth.

After a six-week patrol of Lisbon Road, police told selectmen Tuesday night that the average speed clocked was approximately 34 mph. The speed limit is 35 mph.

So where is the problem?

Code Enforcement Officer Richard Behr said the neighborhood has drastically changed in the past few years.

“New families are moving in with young children,” said Behr, who offered public works a “Children at Play” sign to put up on the street. “There are more than 30 homes in that stretch of road between Cumberland Farms and Curran Farm. Things have changed.”

Although the average recorded speed was listed below the posted speed limit, police Chief Thomas Fales said tickets were issued to a few drivers exceeding the limit by more than 15 mph.

Selectmen decided to have the police department enforce the speed limit a little heavier in the next few weeks to see if that solves the problem. The board will then weigh the number of violations and decide whether the speed limit should be reduced.

Residents from Turcotte Road also approached the board Tuesday night hoping to resolve their own speeding problems.

Turcotte Road resident Claire Surette said that with the interchange right next door, many drivers wander down the dead-end road by accident.

“We have a lot of children that travel from house to house down here,” she said. “And sometimes people just come flying up over the dip in the road unaware that there are more houses down here.”

Selectman Guy Desjardins, backed by the board, asked for a “Children at Play” sign to be purchased and installed facing Route 9.

Fales said he would have his officers keep an eye on the area during their patrols.

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