Klein said that drivers typically speed to get through the lights in the city, but he added that a study was not required to reduce the speed limit. “I think the important factor here is the uniformity,” he said. “It was very difficult for people to know what the speed limit was in Long Beach. And if you drive on the same street … there are two different speed limits.”

McLaughlin voted in favor of the resolution, though he and a number of other residents said that stepped-up enforcement would be needed to have any impact on speeders.

John Bendo, president of the West End Neighbors Civic Association, said that driving through Long Beach is like playing the video game “Frogger.” He said that better synchronization of traffic lights was needed as well.

“People are trying to speed to make the lights,” Bendo said. “You might hit two traffic lights and speed to get through that third one. Let’s change the timing of the lights to have cascading lights like they have in New York City, where if you drive at 30 miles per hour, the light in front of you cascades to green and you can drive continuously without stopping. That would get people to drive the speed limit.”

Richard Boodman, who lobbied for the speed limit reduction, lauded the measure. Boodman said that he is also calling on Sen. Dean Skelos and Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg to consider legislation that would reduce the speed limit even further, to 20 mph, on residential side streets in the city.

“This is a no brainer — the speed limit on Park Avenue should be uniform,” Boodman said. “The purpose is to save lives and property. We’ve had five deaths on the 600 East Park Avenue block in that 35-mile-per-hour zone. Isn’t that enough?”