406 Forum: Traffic and speed limit on Lone Mountain Trail

In a report about traffic and transportation issued March 30 by the Big Sky Chamber of Commerce, David Kack of the Western Transportation Institute recommended that the Montana Department of Transportation conduct a speed study on MT 64, also known as Lone Mountain Trail.

Residents have expressed concern about the lack of turn lanes and poor sight lines on the road, which varies in speed limit from 45–50 mph. What do you think about changing the speed limit on MT 64?

Matt Fritz, Big Sky, Mont., Private Chef, Fishing Guide

“You need to ticket people…and [they] will slow down. Same thing with Little Coyote. [Drivers] go whipping by when I’m walking the dog and they go like 60 and the speed limit is 25.”

Opie Jahn, Big Sky, Mont., Owner, Caliber Coffee

“Are we going to spend extra tax dollars to have more cops here? We need a lot more than that as we look at future growth. We need traffic lights, we need more turning lanes. What we need more than all of that is a safe place for pedestrians to travel in the summer and the winter.”

Joe Flannery, Big Sky, Mont, Former Chef, M.R. Hummers

“Most people seem to obey the speed limit, but [some] do drive a little slower, so I guess I would be good with the speeds as they are posted … The one concern I would have would be an addition of turning lanes, particularly in front of the new hardware [store].”