Lincoln Drive and dozens of other Philly roads get $13 million from PennDot

Philadelphia is getting $13 million to support six traffic-safety projects in Philadelphia, courtesy of speeders caught and fined by automated enforcement cameras.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation announced the grants Wednesday for an array of city projects, including $2 million for traffic-calming measures on Lincoln Drive between Kelly Drive and Wayne Avenue.

Some of that money will help pay for speed humps at 100 additional public, parochial, and private schools in the city, PennDot said.

Since taking office in 2023, the Shapiro administration has invested $49.7 million in city traffic-safety projects, all from revenues raised by speed cameras.

Under the automated speed-enforcement program, grants are plowed back into the communities that generated the revenue. Philadelphia is so far the only municipality in the state where speed cameras are authorized.

Next week, the Philadelphia Parking Authority is activating speed-enforcement cameras in five school zones under an expansion of the program.

Pennsylvania also has automated speed enforcement in highway work zones, but that revenue goes to the Pennsylvania State Police for extra patrols and more troopers, the turnpike for safety projects and speeding counter-measures, and the general treasury.

Fed-up West Mount Airy residents pushed state and local officials for years to reduce speeding, aggressive driving, and near-daily crashes on and near Lincoln Drive, which has hairpin curves and a posted speed limit of 25 mph, and thick commuter traffic zipping through dense neighborhoods.

It was a high-profile instance of Philadelphians rallying around and demanding projects from the city’s Complete Streets program, a road-design approach that seeks to make roadways safer for all users, including pedestrians and cyclists, as well as drivers of motor vehicles.

The new grant is meant to continue traffic-safety work on Lincoln Drive that began a couple of years ago.

That includes speed humps, speed slots, new phosphorescent paint, flexible lane delineators, a smoother merge point where the road narrows, and marked left-turn lanes.

“It’s made a huge difference,” said Josephine Winter, executive director of the West Mount Airy Neighbors civic group, which organized residents.

“People that live along Lincoln Drive are feeling positive,” she said — though there is a split between people who are angry at what speed bumps have done to their cars’ undercarriages and those who support what they say are life-saving improvements.

“The city was wonderful, very responsive,” Winter said. “We’re been fortunate to get something done here.” Next up: working with other Northwest residents to get improvements on side streets, Wissahickon Avenue, and others.