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Home My WebLink About1993-02-01; Traffic Safety Commission; ; Remove or relocate the guardrail recently installed on Alicante Road and Corte de la Vista that was required as part of the Fairways subdivision constructionI I CI1Y OF CARLSBAD TRAFFIC SAFE'IY COMMISSION STAFF REPORT COMMISSION MEETING OF: February 1, 1993 ITEM NO. 6A LOCATION: Fairways subdivision located at Alicante Road and Corte de la Vista INITIATED BY: MaryAnn Kingsley, 2911 Sondra Court, Carlsbad, California 92009 REQUESTED ACTION: Remove or relocate the guardrail recently installed on Alicante Road and Corte de la Vista that was required as part of the Fairways subdivision construction. BACKGROUND: DATA: In September 1991 the final map for Carlsbad Tract 90-23 (Fairways) was approved by the City Council. This subdivision is located on the southwest comer of Alicante Road and Corte de la Vista. It is comprised of 149 lots with uses as follows: 132 lots for single family detached homes and 17 lots for combined uses such as general utility and access, passive recreation, slope and landscape maintenance and temporary recreational vehicle storage. The subdivision is currently under construction and is being built at elevations lower than the adjoining streets, Alicante Road and Corte de la Vista. The slope from the adjoining roadways down to the building pad elevations ranges in height from 6.8 feet to 34.8 feet, with an average slope height of approximately 22 feet. Because of the slope heights, the developer was requested to install guardrail along Alicante Road and Corte de la Vista. Ms. Kingsley has submitted a letter and petition ( attached) and is asking that the guardrail be relocated along both streets to behind the masonry wall. During review of grading plans and improvement plans for the Fairways project, staff in the Plancheck Section of the Engineering Department were concerned about the pad elevations for the subdivision being significantly lower than Alicante Road and Corte de la Vista. As a result, guardrail was requested to be included along both roads. Staff determined that there was a potential for an errant vehicle to run off the road. They were of the opinion that the masonry block wall would not stop a vehicle from eventually rolling down the slope to the backyard areas of the homes located below the roadway level. TRAFFIC SAFE'IY COMMISSION Staff Report COMMISSION MEETING OF: February 1, 1993 (Continued) ITEM NO. 6A The decision to require guardrail was based largely upon the attached Figure 7-1, Equal Severity Curve, from the Caltrans Traffic Manual. The curve is used to determine whether a vehicle hitting guardrail or going off the embankment is more severe. Once a vehicle leaves the roadway, the speed and trajectory of the vehicle and what lies in its path determines the probability of a collisions occurring. Severity of the collision will be dependent upon the restraint system used by the vehicle occupants, the type of vehicle, and the nature of the roadside environment. Basically, the only control that City staff has of the three are design elements of the roadway. A roadside barrier (guardrail) is a longitudinal barrier used to shield the motorist from a natural or man-made hazard along the roadway, such as a slope or embankment. The primary purpose of the roadside barrier is to prevent the vehicle from leaving the roadway or from striking a fixed object considered to be more hazardous than the barrier itself. The Plancheck Division staff considered the consequences of a vehicle running off the road and down the embankment to be more serious than hitting the guardrail itself. Consequently, the guardrail was required with the subdivision construction. Removing the slope or reducing its height was not an option in the subdivision design. The embankment is constructed with a 2: 1 slope in most locations. However, in several constrained locations, retaining walls were constructed to minimize excessive slopes. These retaining walls have a maximum height of 4.5 feet. A 150 foot portion of the guardrail on Alicante Road adjacent to Corte de la Vista has been removed. The guardrail was removed to improve comer sight distance at the intersection. A standard five-feet sidewalk has been constructed behind the guardrail and guardrail posts. Pedestrian safety or accessibility along the sidewalk is not compromised due to the guardrail or guardrail posts. A standard five-foot sidewalk, installed in may locations throughout Carlsbad, generally can only accommodate two person walking abreast. RECOMMENDATION: For safety reasons, the Traffic Safety Coordinating Committee recommends that the guardrail on Alicante Road and Corte de la Vista not be removed. NECESSARY CI'IY COUNCIL ACTION: No City Council action required at this time. ~/~ ' ~ ' ' LOCATION T"'-'> ~ <:::> ~ ~ (;\ <:::> ~ t"-"" ~V\ C""') <::) <:::) ~ c::::. -\ ~~ ~l MAP NOT TO SCALE PROJECT NAME FAIRWAYS PROJECT EXHIBIT 1 \ \ \ ~ '--'~?ll~ ' ' LEGEND l I I ---EXISTING GUARDRAIL J I ~ ISAD(JRA ~ NOT TO SCALE PROJECT NAME ~RtSEAICY Ae6CES.S 'AD EXHIBIT LOCATION OF GUARDRAILS 2 > .., ::, I l.. □ I 1- G ii1 10' 60' 4.5' 5.5' 20' - 20' 10' > .., ::, I l.. □ I l- ei -ix r- 7.25' 2.75' >-- - CROSS SECTION □F CORTE DE LA VISTA NOT TD SCALE 2511 2 // ----- > -.., ::, I l.. □ I 1-::i: I.:) ix 2.75' DETAIL □F GUARDRA IL NOT TD SCALE t----------< CONCRETE BL OCK SCREEN 'v./ ALL I PROJECT NAME : EXHIBIT 3 LOCATION OF GUARDRAIL I November 20, 1992 Mr. Lloyd Hubbs, City Engineer City of Carlsbad 2075 Los Palmas Drive Carlsbad, CA 92009 Dear Mr. Hubbs: / ·------ REFERRED TO CITY Mt.::AG~R FO:ES~iSE Oite: l~/:l ) 'o/ d: I am a homeowner at 2911 Sondra Court facing the Fairways project across Corte de la Vista. This letter is to formally protest the installation of the metal guardrail along Corte de la Vista and down Alicante Rd. They represent a major traffic hazard to residents and this morning I was almost broadsided at,the intersection of Corte de la Vista arid Alicante due to the visual obstruction created by the guardrail. Traffic driving up the hill on Alicante cannot see traffic turning onto Alicante, nor can the driver on Corte de la Vista see approaching traffic unless their vehicle is totally pulled out into oncoming traffic. In addition, the guardrail on Corte de la Vista is hazardous because the sidewalk area left for pedestrians is so inadequate that no more than two people can pass, forcing the third pedestrian to either walk in the shrubs or climb over the guardrail and walk in the street. I have seen this occur on a daily basis. Consequently, when traffic approach••, the pedestrian forced to walk in the street cannot quickly, nor safely, jump the guardrail to the safety of the sidewalk. Secondly, and perhaps of less interest to the City Planners, when Fieldstone proposed the project to the area residents, we were all shown architectural renderings that included a "softened" view of the wall created by extensive landscaping. Because the City of Carlsbad forced this visual pollution on the neighborhood, the wall cannot be landscaped properly and we are looking at our own "freeway" landscape. Had we been told of this major change to our neighborhood, the City and Fieldstone would have been made very aware of our dissatisfaction. This. residential street which dead ends within a couple of blocks, has been turned Page Two November 20, 1992 Mr. Lloyd Hubbs, City Engineer into a fortress for speeding traffic, the likes of which are not even found along most of our major freeways. I have been informed by a member of your staff that the City is already aware of the hazardous nature of the guardrail. My letter to you advising the City of my near-miss this morning is to be considered proper notification that should I be involved in an accident as a result of this City- imposed hazard, this message/notice will become a major issue in any potential litigation. Please remove the entire guardrail along Corte de la Vista and along Alicante where it creates the visual barrier to approaching traffic. THIS IS A SAFETY HAZARD THAT CANNOT BE IGNORED ANY LONGER. Thank you. Sincerely, ~ng~ 2911 Sondra Court Carlsbad, CA 92009 CC: Members of Carlsbad City Council Office of the City Clerk City Clerk City of Carlsbad 1200 Carlsbad Village Drive Carlsbad, CA 92008 We the undersigned hereby request that the MEDAL BEAM GUARD RAIL which was installed on Corte De La Vista in mid-September, 1992 be removed. We all live or drive on Corte De La Vista on a daily basis. The existence of the guard rail in this quiet, lovely, up- scaled residential community is unsightly. The obstensible purpose for the railing grows out of consideration of safety. However, its very existence has the potential of increasing the speed of traffic as well as increasing the chances of accidents. The "barrier" itself constitutes a traff ic hazard that abuts to the curb. The guard rail is in reality count er productive. The safety consideration can be addressed directly by building rein- forcements in the existing wall or by relocating the guard rail on the other side of t he wall on Fieldstone's property. As concerned neigh bors, we hereby petition~ and each of~ to remove the guard rail on Corte De La Vista and solve the safety problems without de stroying our values-satety-property-aesthetics. November 14, 1992 Name --------r ~-l? rp11do 1::, ,fJ/i1JJJu /1 2. ;j cFE L.2e 3. ,,.. ____ (->tL---- Home Address . ;z 'ls'£_ ~g,,, &; ) -l~s &, 11f-t:f<~o/ ...l.. cP 7 i / 0 .r/-c../ t':( // .> 4:, C ~ / ,{ ,f,1 I_'.:, . { / I ' s . • EJ(fr VAi /j {t'K.lt'~L- 6. 1/-1,r hti,::-1. 4. Al,~hq hr • _-,t.-1 . ~ -/ 7 • • 7zl au1c~1 -.2 -~ ,-1.-::t> J • /"''j•y 8 • i\lt,til'Y '007' 9. ,'( .J~·, \ lo c ·-.... i •'. --- • -...C.:...~-"-=-":::----:-~4,,+~~~--/z.a,,.__~--~..C.W.~-.µ....:...:....1,;,J,,,J.....1....j,:,.-_i..;.~~~-·----·~-: ........ .1.....----yL~·, (,<.. ,I--;· 11 . l \•(,>'-_-L -' 1 ~ l-~ J ,._,,,_. ,l 12. , .<J1J ()-1,,__ t,-~ 13. 1111\..v l 14. 1 5 . ,. ~(,,,.,, </✓c ,1:z... (( ,, ,\ (;, ,,.... . ( . ., . , , .,.,,1/ ~ • I;,,/ •. ./ ,, ,, ·.,, t I ----t---+;;...;;_;'-+-__,_"-"_-+-..J....._;__,-:+------------=------------- 1 6 . .'::_ 'f / I .6(7 ...,(,..,,__ ! 11,, I/ ti ( ~-: _J,..., ~.: / I •-? _') ,., ~ J .; • I I I 7-2 ,,_,_ 1:1 1 1 /2:1 2:1 3:1 GUARDRAIL MEDIAN BARRIERS, CRASH CUSHIONS Traffic Manual 0 Figure 7•1 EQUAL SEVERITY CURVE (SEE TEXT FOR INSTRUCTIONS) GUARDRAIL LESS SEVERE (PLACE GUARDRAIL UNDER THESE ------1 CONDITIONS ONLY WHEN THERE IS A HIGH POTENTIAL F'OR RUNNING Off THE ROAD.) MORE SEVERE 10 20 EMBANKMENT HEIGHT -FEET 50