The Westfield Town Council discussed the purchase of the six signs during their committee meeting Tuesday evening.

The signs are similar to the ones already in town that display the legal speed limit and a driver's current speed, but Town Engineer Kris McAloon told Patch that these updated and improved signs will also collect data to help the police department analyze the nature of traffic around Westfield schools.

McAloon said the technology in these lightweight and discreet signs will be able to keep vehicle counts and store speed data even in sleep mode when they appear to be off. This will help police know when they're most needed in the area.

"For instance, if we notice that people are speeding between the hours of 11 and 2, the police could station a patrol officer there during those hours to help curtail the problem," McAloon said.

The new signs will be purchased using federal and state grant money as soon as Westfield receives concurrence from agencies such as the Federal Highway Administration.

The six new signs will join the four the town already owns. However, of those four, only one is currently functional. McAloon said the town is working to negotiate a repair price for the other three signs with the vendor, since Westfield Police Chief John Parizeau considers the original quote too steep.

Town Administrator Jim Gildea expressed his satisfaction with the development during the committee meeting.

"We've been working with the state a long time on this," Gildea said. "We've finally finally won a reward."