Im trying to cut a 4' x 8' piece of 23/32 cabinet grade plywood into strips about 3.4" wide. When I begin to cut the plywood the router head traces the profile line fine, however once it reaches the end of the cut line rather than plunging deeper and re-tracing the line back, the cutting bit returns to safe height and jogs back to the start of the line. Once returning, the bit plunges deeper into the material and continues the process over.
This would not usually be that big of a deal, but when I need to cut over 500 strips, every minute of CNC time is crucial.

My current tools/settings are:

1/4" downcut bit
16,000 RPM
cut speed 3.0
plunge depth .35 to make 2 passes to get to .7 before final cut
to take care of onion skin.

2 questions:

Is there a way to go back and fourth along the line rather than reset back to the beginning of the line?

Is there anyway to make up time by changing my cutting speeds?