LAUREL, DE -- In April, neighbors along West Seventh Street shared with WBOC their hopes for a more permanent solution to speeders they said frequent their street. Now, people along nearby streets told WBOC drivers are also speeding down their road.
West Seventh Street has temporary speed bumps installed along the road. Center Street, one road over, does not. Victor Puckham told WBOC that people will often speed down their road instead.
"Anywhere from 7 or 8 pm to 6 in the morning," Puckham said. "It seems like it's a drag race. Up and down here, and it happens every night."
Puckham said he worries about the kids who live along the street.
"Something needs to be done. Speed bumps, or whatever it might be, something needs to be done," Puckham said. "If I had to do it all over again, I couldn't raise my kids here. They can't even go out and play."
Diana Shockley often watches her granddaughter who lives along the street. She said her granddaughter and the other kids in the neighborhood who come to play with her, know not to get too close to the road. Shockley said people often speed during the daytime as well.
"If they want to go that fast, they need to go to a racetrack. Not around here where kids are playing," Shockley said.
Shockley told WBOC she thinks installing speed bumps would be a good idea.
"I think so, I really do, 'cause then they're not gonna go as fast," Shockley said. "I also think they could possibly put up more signs saying to slow down."
Multiple neighbors also told WBOC they would feel more comfortable with an increased police presence in the area.
Laurel police chief Rob Kracyla told WBOC they plan to start a speed traffic study in the neighborhood in the next few days. Kracyla also said his officers routinely monitor the area on their routes to and from the station.
Kracyla also emphasized that it's hard to get a gauge of what constitutes speeding without proper equipment.