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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-01-09; Traffic Safety Commission; MinutesMEETING OF: DATE OF MEETING: TIME OF MEETING: PLACE OF MEETING: CALL TO ORDER: MINUTES TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSION January 9, 2012 (Special Meeting) 3:00 p.m. City Council Chambers Chair Gallagher called the Meeting to order at 3 :00 p.m. ROLL CALL: Present: Absent: Staff Members Present: APPROVAL OF MINUTES: November 7, 2011 Chair Steve Gallagher Vice-Chair Gordon Cress Commissioner Guy Roney Commissioner Hope Wrisley Commissioner Jairo Valderrama None Bryan Jones, Deputy Transportation Director Skip Hammann, Transportation Director John Kim, Associate Engineer, Transportation Department Jim Murray, Associate Engineer, Transportation Department Chair Gallagher requested two corrections to the November 7, 2011 minutes as follows: Page 5, Paragraph 7, should state " ... radar could be used for speed enforcement along the subject roadway." The second correction was to add a comment made by Chair Gallagher on Page 6, Item 7, "At the all-way stop at Lancer Way and Gayle Way there are temporary flashing yellow beacons that were installed above the stop signs, and he felt was this was sending the wrong message to the motorists since yellow denotes an advisory warning. He had suggested that staff consider changing the yellow lenses to red lenses on the flashing beacons above the stop signs on Lancer Way. He felt that would be more consistent." January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page2 ACTION: Motion by Commissioner Wrisley, and duly seconded by Commissioner Roney, to approve the minutes of the regular meeting held on November 7, 2011, as amended. VOTE: AYES: NOES: ABSTAIN: 3-0-2 Gallagher, Roney, Wrisley None Cress, Valderrama There was no Traffic Safety Commission meeting held in December 2011. ITEM 4 -ORAL COMMUNICATIONS: None. ITEM 5 -PREVIOUS BUSINESS: John Kim, Associate Engineer, stated the prima facie speed limit of 40 miles per hour upon La Costa Avenue from 1,000 feet east of El Camino Real to Rancho Santa Fe Road have been installed. Chair Gallagher asked when the signs were actually changed from 45 miles per hour to 40 miles per hour. Jim Murray, Associate Engineer, clarified the work orders were supposed to have been worked on last week, but will actually be installed this week. Therefore, the signs at this point are still at 45 miles per hour. The field crews were pulled off on some other project. Chair Gallagher asked ifthere was a grace period for police enforcement for the motorist to adjust to the new speed limit. Mr. Kim stated not that he was aware of. January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page3 ITEM 6 -NEW BUSINESS: ITEM 6A: Approve the priority ranking list for residential streets qualifying for Phase II of the Carlsbad Residential Traffic Management Program. Mr. Kim stated that staff was excited to bring forth today's staff report on the revisions to the Carlsbad Residential Traffic Management Program (CRTMP). The revisions have been a two and a half year process and staff is finally at a point where they would like to proceed and start implementing some of the features of the new program. Jim Murray, Associate Engineer, will present the staff report. Mr. Murray stated at the meeting of May 2, 2011 the Traffic Safety Commission (TSC) received a staff report regarding final revisions to the CRTMP. The proposed revisions included cost effective traffic management features to Phase II, such as residential stop signs, speed cushions, speed tables and striping, as well as evaluation threshold criteria for each of the three phases of the program. Staff also explained that the long revision process that was required to approve the new CRTMP had resulted in a wait list of twenty-four residential streets awaiting traffic calming. Staff proposed at the May 2nd meeting that the points scoring system found in the new program be used to establish a priority ranking order of the residential streets that met the threshold criteria for Phase II implementation. After consideration of the staff report and public testimony, the TSC voted unanimously to recommend approval of the proposed revisions to the CRTMP and supported staff's· recommendations regarding the waiting list. Mr. Murray described the three new phases of the revised CRTMP, including the new Phase II which allows consideration of cost-effective features, such as residential stop signs if the criteria of a minimum critical speed of 32 miles per hour was satisfied. Staff has worked on the revisions to the CRTMP over the past two and one-half years to incorporate the cost-effective traffic calming measures such as residential stop signs, speed cushions, and speed tables as part of the new CRTMP. The proposed revisions were field tested in collaboration with the Fire and Police Departments via pilot projects on Donna Drive and Sierra Morena A venue and found to be effective measures when used with proper engineering judgment. On May 24, 2011, City Council approved the revised CRTMP which allows the use of residential stop signs, speed cushions, and speed tables on residential streets that meet the eligibility criteria of Phase II. Staff based their recommendations for the Phase II revisions and specifically the 32 mile per hour criteria based on the findings from the two pilot programs. During the CRTMP revision process, requests for traffic calming on residential streets were put on temporary hold. It was critically important for staff to finalize a program whereby the highest priority needs of the entire community could be considered and the most effective utilization of available funds and resources ensured. The temporary hold resulted in a waiting list of twenty-four residential streets requesting Phase II consideration. As stated in the CRTMP, not all residential streets will qualify to participate in Phase II of the program based on the established eligibility January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page4 criteria. The 15 streets that do not meet the 32 mile per hour criteria will still be eligible to receive Phase I efforts. Nine streets are eligible for Phase II ( critical speeds at or above 32 miles per hour). They are: 1. Magnolia Avenue (Highland Drive to Pio Pico Drive) 2. Esfera Street (Cadencia Street to Piragua Street) 3. Levante Street (Escenico Terrace to La Costa Avenue) 4. Chestnut Avenue (Pontiac Drive to Sierra Morena Avenue) 5. Corintia Street (Alga Road to El Fuerte Street) 6. Daisy Avenue (Rose Drive to Batiquitos Drive) 7. Pontiac Drive (Victoria Avenue to Spokane Way) 8. Trieste Drive (Chestnut Avenue to Milano Drive) 9. Estrella de Mar Road (Alga Road to Arenal Road) Fifteen streets are not eligible for Phase II (critical speeds less than 32 miles per hour). They are: 1. Garfield Street (Pine A venue to Tamarack A venue) 2. Town Garden Road (Alicante Road to Village Green Drive) 3. Xana Way (Alga Road to Corintia Street) 4. Unicomio Street (Corintia to El Fuerte Street) 5. El Arbol Drive (Cannon Road to Manzano Drive) 6. Knowles Avenue (Jefferson Street to 1-5) 7. Camino Coronado (Calle Jallisco to Calle Cozumel) 8. Los Robles Drive (Cannon Road to Manzano Drive) 9. Forest Avenue (Highland Drive to Crest Drive) 10. Edinburgh Drive (Tamarack Avenue to east terminus) 11. Glasgow Drive (Edinburgh Drive to south terminus) 12. Galena Avenue (Alicante Road to Goldstone Road) 13. Camino del Parque (Paseo del Norte to Paseo del Norte) 14. Towhee Lane (Nightshade Road to Aviara Parkway) 15. Mariposa Road (Torreyanna Circle to Mariposa Road) Mr. Murray indicated the order in which staff is recommending addressing the nine eligible streets for Phase II was previously discussed by the TSC at its May 2011 meeting. The TSC supported staffs recommendation to utilize a ranking order based on severity of the issues. These were quantified using the Phase III Qualification Criteria of the approved CRTMP. January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page5 The priority ranking of the nine eligible streets for Phase II Traffic Calming are: 1. Magnolia Avenue (Highland Drive to Pio Pico Drive) 2. Esfera Street (Cadencia Street to Piragua Street) 3. Levante Street (Escenico Terrace to La Costa Avenue) 4. Chestnut Avenue (Pontiac Drive to Sierra Morena Ave) 5. Corintia Street (Alga Road to El Fuerte Street) 6. Daisy Avenue (Rose Drive to Batiquitos Drive) 7. Pontiac Drive (Victoria Avenue to Spokane Way) 8. Trieste Drive (Chestnut Avenue to Milano Drive) 9. Estrella de Mar Road (Alga Road to Arenal Road) Critical Speed {MPH} 37 39 35 38 35 34 33 35 32 Qualification Points 63 56 53 51 43 36 36 21 13 In conclusion, Mr. Murray stated it is staffs professional assessment that the CRTMP as presented and adopted by City Council and the TSC has identified the highest priority streets to proceed to Phase II. The process used to evaluate the streets provides a best value, cost-effective approach to addressing resident concerns. Commissioner Roney asked if there was any feedback from the residents on the pilot programs. Mr. Kim indicated that generally their responses were very positive, but they did receive one complaint on each street regarding either the stop signs or the vertical features, which illustrates that no matter how much support a particular solution has, there is usually opposition to it. That is why the criteria that is applied is so important to make good engineering decisions. Commissioner Roney said staff spent quite a bit of time with the residents in coming up with the pilot project improvements and then used that information to revise the CRTMP. Mr. Kim stated staff would have the same type of public input process on the Phase II streets as well. Public Testimony Chair Gallagher called for Public Testimony. He requested the public limit their comments to the allotted 5 minutes per speaker due to the large number of citizens wishing to speak today. January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page6 Eve Mancuso, 7196 Estrella de Mar Road, Carlsbad, stated her concerns regarding the dangers on her street due to the speed of drivers, the lack of sidewalks, and the limited visibility from her driveway. David Vine, 7062 Estrella de Mar Road, Carlsbad, reiterated Ms. Mancuso's concerns and added the increase of traffic on El Camino Real as a contributor to the traffic issues. He also stated high pedestrian volumes due to the resort. He appreciated staffs efforts and hoped to see some mitigation. Kim Wolf, 2454 Levante Street, Carlsbad, stated her long history of communication with Jim Murray regarding safety concerns on Levante Street. Due to the number of families living on the street, she hoped that the City would come up with a plan to provide safety and quality of life. She thanked Jim Murray for being so informative and helpful through the process. Steve Lincoln, 6638 Towhee Lane, Carlsbad, stated he was a Board Member of the Aviara Master Association and Board Member of Friends of A viara. As a father, he fears for the safety of his child who would like to play on the street. Although his street does not qualify for Phase II, it was his understanding that residents could fund Phase II improvements privately. He asked that the City be proactive rather than reactive and consider installirig speed cushions as they are relatively . . mexpens1ve. Mary Beth Vine, 7062 Estrella de Mar Road, Carlsbad, thanked Jim Murray for his efforts in helping the concerned residents to get to this point. She brought up the absence of sidewalks and the curvature of the roadway as contributing to the uniqueness of problems associated with her street. Catherine Jain, 938 Daisy Avenue, Carlsbad, thanked Jim Murray, Lt. Rawson, Doug Bilse, and everyone that has worked with them since 2005 regarding Daisy A venue. She stated that the number of children living on her street, the presence of a daycare and an elderly care facility, and the steepness of the road are aspects that staff should consider. Joseph Mahon, 6646 Towhee Lane, Carlsbad, stated like many of his fellow citizens here today he has been working with the Traffic Department since 2005. He has been a resident of Towhee Lane for 18 years. He stated concern of staffs findings as they related to Towhee Lane and wanted to meet with other residents after the meeting to get speed cushions installed in all the neighborhoods. Tracey Pear, 6701 Corintia Street, Carlsbad, stated she agreed that the results do not represent her street. She mentioned the presence of La Costa Meadows Elementary School, diffi culty in pulling out of driveways, and the grade of the roadway as factors that make speeding a bigger issue. She supports the consideration of stop signs and speed cushions on her street. January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page7 Seeing no others wishing to testify, Chair Gallagher closed Public Testimony. DISCUSSION Commissioner Roney asked if the Police Department acted as the Traffic Management Calming Program in that they will come out and work with the neighborhoods as an interim step. Many of the public speakers have indicated that there is some urgency in their neighborhoods. Mr. Kim indicated he was not aware of that type of traffic program being in place besides the Neighborhood Watch Program. Commissioner Roney thought they had a program where citizens can come and the Police Department would then come into the neighborhood if the community participated in it. Mr. Kim stated that was probably not traffic-specific, but more crime-related. The Transportation Department does partner with the Police Department and Phase I solutions rely on enforcement and education as provided by the Police Department. Commissioner Roney asked if the 4 streets per year was due to budgetary cutbacks. Mr. Kim said there was no specific schedule of how many streets they will be able to address in a given year. That may be a rough estimate. Mr. Murray stated that was an estimate that he was giving out at one point to the residents. Mr. Kim said it was more of a staffing issue than budgetary one. They need to schedule the meetings. There is limited staff. They will do the selected streets as soon as they can, but there is no definitive amount that they can do in a given time. Commissioner Roney asked if it was possible to move up the schedule. Commissioner Wrisley thought it should be possible to address 5 streets per year and then the selected streets could be completed in two years. January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page8 Mr. Murray indicated it depended on staffing, how much staff time can be allocated, and also the time with each neighborhood can vary. One neighborhood might go quicker than another neighborhood, as far as the public process and maybe a larger group of the neighbors are more willing to go forward and not polarize. Mr. Kim pointed out that the approved program is not based on 100 percent concurrence. It is unrealistic to get 100 percent. That's not what they are looking for. Staff just wants the majority of the residents to support any proposed solution. Chair Gallagher stated he would like some clarification as to what is the expectation from staff regarding the TSC and the input they received today. They have the priority list that has already been established. What is expected of this Commission today after hearing the presentation and input from the public? Mr. Kim stated that as with any staff report presented to the TSC, it is within their power to make suggestions that may be contrary to the staff report. Chair Gallagher felt it would be presumptuous of this Commission since they have been partners with staff and the whole overall plan, which he happens to think is a lot of good progress. He knows that he heard some of the people today state that they have been waiting a number of years and he thinks that in the last couple of years that he has been part of the Commission, he has seen a number of things come forward to give hope to local neighborhoods that he didn't see before. That is his understanding. He is a little concerned or feels uncomfortable changing the ranking based on all of the criteria that has already been reviewed and agreed with. It doesn't make sense that the Commission should step out of bounds here and do something different. He didn't want the public today to think that the Commission has some extra authority that he doesn't think that is necessarily what they have in this case. Bryan Jones, Deputy Transportation Director, added that the TSC has been partnering with staff through this whole pilot testing program, creating the new criteria which they have graded, and what staff wants to do is bring back the list before the Commission so they can see how the criteria that was developed flushed out the streets so they can attack the highest priority streets first. When the City Council and the TSC worked last year, they were trying to identify the highest priority needs of the community first so they could tackle those streets first, and then as those streets get traffic calmed, then they can look for other opportunities. Staff wanted to bring back the priority arrangement 1 ist that the Commission gave them direction on. You can see where streets 1-9 had the most qualification points. We use the same criteria for everybody and the same measurement tools for everybody. January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page9 Skip Hammann, Transportation Director, clarified for the public that when staff and the TSC deliberate this in a public setting, the minutes, notes and agenda are forwarded to the City Council, so they will have an opportunity to review the comments that the public said today and this information will go to them for their information. The comments that were heard today will be seen by the City Council. Commissioner Wrisley stated that she knew that everybody thinks that their street is the most important. When they were talking about traffic calming in her neighborhood, she felt yes, do something about that right now. But when staff does the qualification points, you have to look at that and say okay, this is the progression that we should go through. I know that everybody thinks that their street is the most important, and she is sure it is to them, but it is not to an objective panel. She is hoping that soon we will get to all of their streets. Until they can, however, she hoped for their patience. Vice-Chair Cress indicated that he felt staff did a great job on the whole project and report and he wanted to move that the Commission accept the CR TMP as presented and go forth with all due haste. Chair Gallagher stated that although Vice-Chair Cress made a motion, there were some more comments he wanted to make. One of the public speakers stated that if they made their own contribution they could add things to their own road, and he didn't recall that as ever being part of the toolbox. He wanted clarification for the benefit of the public who said they would be willing to contribute private monies. To his knowledge, he didn't think they have ever discussed private funding and doesn't think it is their business to conduct funding. That is between the City and staff. Mr. Kim agreed that was not his understanding. This program was developed to address these issues on public residential streets and it does not have a mechanism to allow private installation on a public street. The criteria is there because it is a public street and it is accessed by all users, not just the residents, but visitors and businesses. The City must make a detennination on what is appropriate on a public street and to his knowledge staff cannot consider private funding for a feature that would not be justified by Engineering. Chair Gallagher said that was.his understanding also, but he appreciated hearing that from staff. One of the public speakers lived on street #9 (Estrella de Mar Road) and he was frustrated because there are 8 streets ahead ofhim. If a new street comes in and it has 38 points, then Estrella de Mar Road is going to still be below that. Would that be the logical way that staff is going to access these streets in the future? January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page 10 Mr. Kim stated it was his assumption that this list is the order in which staff would address the streets. Any new requests would come after staff addressed these 9 streets. This is on the basis of making a commitment to these 9 streets to address their issues and we ought to complete the traffic calming efforts on these 9 streets. Chair Gallagher asked for clarification because he felt that this was a pretty critical point for some of the people who are on the lower end of Phase II streets. Mr. Jones indicated that Chair Gallagher was correct in his assessment. If there is a street that comes in and it had a higher score, staff would put it on the list. They will address streets on the highest priority needs, so as streets come in if they rank higher they will be put on the list and take them in order of their rank on the list. Chair Gallagher thought that may be the case, but he wanted to make sure the residents know how the process works, because these individuals have been involved a long time and they need to know where they sit in this whole order. Mr. Jones stated this list could continue to grow or it could stay the same, just depending on how the community communicates with the issues or streets. Staff will go out and evaluate any street and identify where it belongs on the list. Chair Gallagher asked for clarification that all funding decisions are not something that belongs to this Commission. He sensed from the public that they felt perhaps the Commission had the capability of doing something with the funding, and he didn't believe that is a role of theirs. Was that his understanding? Mr. Jones indicated the Commission recommends to the City Council and the City Council makes the decision on all funding programs throughout the City. Commissioner Wrisley stated that the first street on the second list of streets not eligible for Phase II traffic calming is Garfield Street. Have 4-way stops been installed there yet? If so, will that kind of knock it off the chart? January 9, 2012 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page 11 Mr. Jones stated staff was working on taking that stop sign list to City Council as a sight distance issue and that is the reason that location was put in. ACTION: VOTE: AYES: NOES: ABSTAIN: Motion by Vice-Chair Cress, and duly seconded by Commissioner Roney, to approve the priority ranking list for residential streets qualifying for Phase II of the Carlsbad Residential Traffic Management Program. 5-0-0 Gallagher, Cress, Valderrama, Roney, Wrisley None None ITEM 7: REPORT FROM TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSIONERS None. ITEM 8: REPORT FROM TRAFFIC ENGINEER The next regular Traffic Safety Commission meeting is scheduled for February 6, 2012 at 3:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers. Mr. Kim stated he did not know at this time if there would be an agenda item or not. There may be a presentation in February. Staff will advise the Commission as soon as they know. ADJOURNMENT: By proper motion, Chair Gallagher adjourned the Special Meeting of January 9, 2012 at 4:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Ruth Woodbeck Minutes Clerk