CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The 50 mph speed limit drivers have seen on State Highway 361 since August could soon be written into city code.
On Tuesday, Oct. 27, Corpus Christi City Council will vote on an ordinance setting a 50 mph speed zone on SH 361 from Park Road 22 to the Corpus Christi city limits. Until now, the city’s code listed the limit as 55 mph from Park Road 22 to the Packery Channel Bridge and 60 mph from the bridge to the city limits.
According to the city’s agenda memo, the Texas Department of Transportation conducted a traffic study of SH 361 after crashes and deaths on the highway in August 2026. The study looked at existing speeds, crashes and road design. TxDOT has already installed the new signs and is asking the city to concur by passing the ordinance. City staff is recommending approval.
The same ordinance would raise speed limits to 65 mph on part of the Crosstown Expressway and on the new Harbor Bridge.
For Peggy Shirley, who moved to Padre Island in 1979, Highway 361 was once the road to a night of dancing in Port Aransas. She now drives it at least once a day to her house there.
“It was a small two-lane highway for years,” Shirley said. “When they widened it, and the speed limit got higher, then that’s when they started experiencing a lot of accidents.”
Shirley said the slower limit hasn’t made much difference in her drive time from Commodores to Port Aransas. She also said drivers are noticing a heavier law enforcement presence on the highway. On Saturday, she said, an SUV passed her while she was going 50, and she later drove past it as it was getting a ticket.
She admits she doesn’t love driving slower, but says the change is needed.
“I think reducing the speed limit, even though I don’t personally like it, is necessary,” Shirley said. “It’s necessary to stop having these terrible accidents.”
City Council meets Tuesday at City Hall.
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