The speed limit on a portion of Route 17 north of Gloucester Court House may be raised from 55 to 60 miles per hour. This is if the county’s board of supervisors approves the increase, which has been supported by the Virginia State Police and the Gloucester Sheriff’s Office. The board is expected to make a decision at its March 5 meeting in the colonial courthouse.

Joyce McGowan, VDOT’s residency administrator, told the board of supervisors during its Feb. 5 meeting that the General Assembly amended the state code expanding various roads in the commonwealth eligible for 60 mile per hour speed limit. She said various factors taken under consideration include traffic and crash data, discussions with law enforcement, roadside development, and pedestrian activity.

The first study area, which the board decided not to consider, included a portion of Route 14 just west of the Mathews County line to just shy of Gloucester’s Main Street. Both the GSO and State Police d...