Speed Cushions
Speed Tables: Designs, Dimensions & Residential Picks
Cojo
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6 min read
A residential speed table is a 22-foot raised crossing that slows neighborhood traffic to 15 to 22 mph while letting school buses, garbage trucks, and emergency vehicles pass with minimal disruption. The Federal Highway Administration's Traffic Calming ePrimer Module 3 documents speed tables as one of the most widely deployed devices on local streets. The five designs below are the ones Oregon municipalities approve most often through their residential traffic calming programs.
Residential streets carry buses, refuse trucks, and ambulances that a generic parking-lot speed bump would slow excessively. The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Traffic Calming Manual, Chapter 3, recommends speed tables specifically for streets with target speeds in the 20 to 30 mph range, where speed bumps would over-decelerate larger vehicles and speed humps would still cause noticeable delay for transit and EMS. Residential streets in Portland, Salem, Eugene, and Bend each have published programs that use speed tables as a primary tool.
Selection criteria included three gates: ITE-recommended profile geometry, ADA Standards section 403 compliance when an accessible route crosses the table, and confirmed approval through at least one Oregon residential traffic calming program. The five below cleared all three.
The default residential design. Hot-mix asphalt with 6-foot parabolic ramps and a 10-foot flat top, sitting 3 inches above grade. Compatible with the same crack-seal and seal-coat maintenance as the surrounding pavement.
A standard 22-foot asphalt speed table with a marked pedestrian crosswalk on the flat top. This is technically a "raised crosswalk" by FHWA terminology and is governed by MUTCD Part 3B for pavement marking standards. Pedestrian visibility plus speed reduction in one device.
A speed table with sine-wave ramp transitions instead of straight tapers. Reduces the vertical jolt for school buses and emergency vehicles. The longer ramp transition makes the device feel less abrupt for daily neighborhood drivers as well.
A 22-foot speed table with brick or paver inlay on the flat-top section. Common in older residential districts where neighborhood design review or HOA covenants require visual integration with historic streetscape. The inlay surface adds rolling resistance, reinforcing the speed-reduction effect.
A bolt-down rubber speed table assembled from interlocking modules. The least common residential pick, but the right choice when a neighborhood is testing whether a speed table is appropriate before committing to a permanent install. Removable without saw-cutting.
| Scenario | Best fit | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Standard residential street | Standard asphalt | Lowest cost, blends in |
| Mid-block crosswalk needed | Asphalt + marked crosswalk | Doubles as pedestrian device |
| Bus or fire-access route | Sinusoidal | Smallest jolt at target speed |
| Historic neighborhood | Brick-inlay | Meets design review |
| Pilot or short-term test | Modular rubber | Removable without permanent work |
Industry Baseline Range
| Design | Per-table installed |
|---|---|
| Standard asphalt | $5,000 to $9,000 |
| Asphalt with marked crosswalk | $5,800 to $10,500 |
| Sinusoidal asphalt | $6,500 to $11,000 |
| Brick-inlay | $9,000 to $15,000+ |
| Modular rubber | $4,500 to $8,500 |
Asphalt cement (PG-grade binder) prices climbed roughly 18% across 2024 and 2025 per the BLS PPI WPU0581. Traffic-control labor on a residential street typically runs 10 to 14% of the line item, lower than commercial work because lane closures are simpler. Cost-share programs in Portland, Salem, and Eugene reduce the homeowner-borne portion when an HOA or neighborhood association cosponsors the install.
In April 2025 Cojo installed two standard 22-foot asphalt speed tables and one sinusoidal table on a Lake Oswego neighborhood greenway. The neighborhood association ran a before-and-after radar speed study that recorded the 85th-percentile speed dropping from 33 mph to 22 mph. The sinusoidal table was placed on the section that overlapped with the Lake Oswego Fire Department primary response route, per their guidance under NFPA 1141.
Most Oregon cities require a homeowner-driven petition, a traffic engineering review, and a public works approval. The Portland Bureau of Transportation publishes its program under "Neighborhood Greenways and Traffic Calming." Salem, Eugene, and Bend run analogous programs through their public works departments. Typical timeline is 6 to 12 months from petition to install, longer if the street is on a transit route.
For more on petition mechanics and traffic-engineering criteria see the speed tables guide, and for the device geometry citizens are typically asked to evaluate see speed table dimensions.
Cojo provides residential speed table installation across the Willamette Valley and Central Oregon. We coordinate the city traffic-calming application packet, field survey, traffic control, and asphalt placement in one scope. See how do speed tables work for engineering background, speed table cost for fuller pricing, or pair installation with our asphalt maintenance services. For Eugene-area context see Speed Table Installation Eugene. Get a custom quote.
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