Monroe PTO Donates 'Speed Feedback' Sign to City

An anonymous donor has given funds to the Monroe Elementary School PTO in Hinsdale for the purchase of a “speed feedback sign” that was installed near the school this week.

Last year, Hinsdale Police Chief Bradley Bloom challenged local PTO presidents to raise donations for the purchase of the LED signs that offer visual cues to drivers to slow down and follow the speed limit when approaching schools.

The city signed a memorandum of understanding with Dist. 181, which will provide donations toward the purchase of the signs. The signs become city property, which assumes the costs of installation and maintenance.

The police department has a portable LED speed feedback sign that it uses in residential neighborhoods and areas where speeding violations are reported. Studies show that when motorists spot the LED speed feedback signs, they will adjust their speed accordingly.

The signs also allow police to wirelessly collect and analyze traffic speeds, for future enforcement patrols during periods where speed violations are most frequent.

“We are thankful for an anonymous donor to PTO that shares in our spirit of safety,” Monroe Principal Justin Horne said in a news advisory. “The positive impact of this sign may be impossible to measure, but studies show that this technology will slow vehicles as they pass our school.”

The sign was installed  in the 200 block of North Madison Street. The Hinsdale Police Department will continue to reach out to other PTOs that may wish to install the speed feedback signs near their respective schools. Permanent speed feedback sign installations are only available in school zones.