Drivers will be forced to slow down to 40km/h through Wangaratta's central business district in an effort to make it a safer place for pedestrians.
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The zone described as stage 1 will cover the area bounded by and including Ovens, Chisholm, Faithfull and Ford streets.
The new 40km/h speed limit will come into place from May 28.
Wangaratta mayor Dean Rees said the slower speed was aimed at making the streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists.
"It's purely done for pedestrian safety to tell people if they need to brake quickly, they should be able to if they are doing 40km/h," he said.
"We've had it in the pipeline for a long time."
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The slower speeds come after the council installed raised pedestrian crossings in the city during 2020.
"We went out to community consultation to make sure that the residents were aware and the people using it were aware and overall the feedback was very positive that things were slowing," Cr Rees said.
"We've done it in conjunction with all our pedestrian crossings that we have all over the last 12 to 18 months to slow the traffic down.
"Our CBD is becoming so much more congested this year. A lot of traffic is already at 40km/h."
He said one woman told him recently that her husband had been hit by a car while crossing Reid Street and although the man was not injured, she wanted to see another pedestrian crossing at the location.
The mayor confirmed this would happen in the near future after it was approved by Regional Roads Victoria.
The new 40km/h limit had also been signed off by RRV.
Cr Rees said the next improvement he would like to see on Wangaratta's roads was the addition of a lane at roundabouts such as the one at the intersection of Tone Road and Ford Street, which he said would solve the issue of traffic banking up at peak hour.
"There's a lot of angst in the mornings when it gets busier and people have to let others in," he said.
"That's my next plan."
