AGENDA #5b
MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor and Town Council
FROM: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager
SUBJECT: Response to a Petition Requesting a Vehicular Speed Study on North Lakeshore Drive
DATE: October 27, 2004
The following report responds to a petition from Mr. Robert Hollister requesting a vehicular speed study on North Lakeshore Drive.
At its September 7, 2004 meeting, the Town Council received and referred a petition from Mr. Robert Hollister, 2008 North lakeshore Drive, requesting a vehicular speed study on North Lakeshore Drive. The petition was also signed by several other area residents. A copy of the petition is provided as Attachment 1. The petition expresses concern about speeding on North Lakeshore Drive and requests that studies be conducted to determine whether or not a significant and correctible speeding problem exists.
North Lakeshore Drive is designated as a “through” street at intersections within the limits of the study area, and vehicles can continue through these intersections without being required to stop. The side streets at intersections within the study area are designated as “stop” streets, and vehicles are required to stop at the existing stop signs before continuing through the intersection(s). The posted speed limit on all streets within the study area is 25 mph. The roadway is generally level with several curves. It is a collector street with a width of 25 foot of pavement serving a large residential area of Town and it is a public transit route.
Attachment 2 is a map of the North Lakeshore Drive study area.
DISCUSSION
The Town staff met with Mr. Hollister and selected three locations for speed studies on North Lakeshore Drive. Speed studies were conducted from October 15-18, 2004. A copy of the study data was provided to Mr. Hollister. The results of the study are provided in Table 1 and are summarized below:
Ø Traffic volume on weekdays: 1991 – 2758 vehicles/day
Ø Traffic volume on weekends: 1212 – 1993 vehicles/day
Ø Average speed: 27 to 35 mph
Ø 85 % speed: 30 – 40 mph
Ø Highest speed recorded: greater than 50 mph
Traffic volumes are well below the capacity of North Lakeshore Drive and are typical for similar streets in other parts of the community. Speeding appears to be a problem on North Lakeshore Drive; however, the observed speeds are not unusual on other Town streets with similar geometric characteristics.
|
Location |
Traffic Volume |
Average Speed (mph) |
85% Speed (mph) |
Highest Speed (mph) Recorded |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1. Near 1819 N. Lakeshore Dr |
|
|
|
|
|
Friday, 10/15/04 |
2758 |
34.85 |
40.31 |
> 50 |
|
Saturday, 10/16/04 |
1993 |
34.31 |
39.84 |
> 50 |
|
Sunday, 10/17/04 |
1679 |
34.74 |
40.48 |
> 50 |
|
Monday, 10/18/04 |
2641 |
34.31 |
39.79 |
> 50 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2. Near 2008 N. Lakeshore Dr |
|
|
|
|
|
Friday, 10/15/04 |
2538 |
27.27 |
31.47 |
> 50 |
|
Saturday, 10/16/04 |
1830 |
27.22 |
31.17 |
> 50 |
|
Sunday, 10/17/04 |
1506 |
27.35 |
31.87 |
> 50 |
|
Monday, 10/18/04 |
2373 |
26.90 |
30.44 |
> 45 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3. Near 2107 N. Lakeshore Dr |
|
|
|
|
|
Friday, 10/15/04 |
2100 |
34.54 |
39.12 |
> 50 |
|
Saturday, 10/16/04 |
1496 |
33.59 |
38.52 |
> 50 |
|
Sunday, 10/17/04 |
1212 |
34.13 |
39.03 |
50 |
|
Monday, 10/18/04 |
1991 |
33.78 |
38.39 |
> 50 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Council has adopted Traffic Calming Policy and Procedures including a neighborhood petition process. Currently, we have 25 petitions for traffic calming that are pending evaluation in accordance with the approved policy and procedures.
Town policy requires that a valid traffic calming petition must be signed by two thirds of the property owners within the service area surrounding the proposed project site(s). We have provided Mr. Hollister with a copy of the adopted Traffic Calming Policy and Procedures. We also provided a petition form and information on the required number of signatures. Mr. Hollister agreed to work with area residents to obtain the required signatures.
We informed Mr. Hollister that, upon receipt of a valid petition in accordance with the Town Traffic Calming Policy, we would further study North Lakeshore Drive, propose an improvement plan, and prioritize the project based on the adopted ranking system and in relation to other traffic calming projects that have completed the necessary procedural steps. The North Lakeshore Drive project would then be presented to the Council for funding consideration along with other prioritized projects.