LIVE OAK — Turning left off of U.S. Highway 90 onto Helvenston Street, Don Allen needs more than his blinker.

The Live Oak city councilman said his cruise control is also a necessity. It’s why he proposed raising the speed limit on the city street to the rest of the council at the Feb. 12 meeting.

“I think it is extremely too low,” Allen said, proposing an increase from 30 miles per hour to 40 on the stretch from U.S. 90 to Railroad Avenue. “That’s the only street in Suwannee County that I run my cruise control on because I can’t go 30 miles per hour on that road.”

City Manager Ron Williams was in agreement that an adjustment is likely needed.

However, he and Police Chief Buddy Williams want to collect data to make sure the correct speed limit is set for the road, which has Heritage Park along it as well as Heritage Trail soon to cross it as work continues extending the walking path to the city’s southern limit.

“There needs to be some consideration,” Ron Williams said, adding the data which will mainly be traffic counts would ensure the speed limit is properly set. “We’ve talked about what that magic number is, the sweet spot, in regards to the speed there.

“It just shouldn’t be all over the place.”

Councilman David Burch agreed that data was necessary and also added the presence of Heritage Park needed to be considered.

“There are safety issues that would need to be addressed there,” Ron Williams agreed, noting the hopeful increase in walkers going to be crossing the road on the trail.

Buddy Williams said his recommendation would be from Lee Avenue east due to the extension of the trail and the park.

Councilman Mark Stewart said he’d like to see some uniformity in the speed limits on city streets, noting some are 30 while others may be 35 or Helvenston being proposed to be 40.

City Attorney Fred Koberlein said the default limit in the city is 30 miles per hour and adjustments are made from there, based on the data Williams wants to collect as well as the zoning district the road runs through and other variables such as being a two-lane street or four-lane.

“It has to be backed up by data for adjusting from 30,” Koberlein said.

That is Ron Williams’ goal too.

“It’s not a speed trap,” he said. “It’s not designed to do that.”