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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001-10-01; Traffic Safety Commission; MinutesMEETING OF: TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSION DATE OF MEETING: October 1,2001 (Regular Meeting) TIME OF MEETING: 3:OO P.M. PLACE OF MEETING: CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER: Vice Chairperson Jim Courtney called the Meeting to order at 3:OO p.m. ROLL CALL: Present: Absent: Staff Members: APPROVAL OF MINUTES: September 10,2001 ACTION: VOTE: AYES: NOES: ABSTAIN: Vice Chairperson Jim Courtney, Commissioners Keith Gillfillan, Jeny Schall, Bob Mertz Chairperson Frank Whitton Robert Johnson, Deputy City Engineer, Transportation Division John Kim, Associate Engineer, Transportation Division Motion by Commissioner Mertz, and duly seconded, to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of September 10,2001 as presented. 3-0-0 Mertz, Schall, Courtney None Gillfillan ITEM 4 - ORAL COMMUNICATIONS: None ITEM 5 - PREVIOUS BUSINESS: Robert Johnson, Deputy City Engineer, Transportation Division, referring to September 10, 2001 agenda item MA Aviara PaFkway/Nightshade Road intersection, informed the Commission that the landscape company for the Aviara Master Association (HOA) has trimmed the vegetation on the east side of Aviara Parkway, south of Nightshade Road, which opened up the intersection sight line. October 1,2001 NEW BUSINESS: ITEM 6A: TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSION Page 2 Request for installation of an ALL-WAY STOP - Calle BarcelonalPaseo Avellano intersection. Associate Engineer, John Kim, Transportation Division, stated that agenda item MA is a request to establish an ALL-WAY STOP at the intersection of Calle Barcelona at Paseo Avellano. Ms. Navis, who initiated the request, called and advised Mr. Kim that she would not be in attendance at today’s meeting, and reiterated her interest in the results of this meeting. Referring to an overhead slide of the location map, Mr. Kim stated that Calle Barcelona is classified as a secondary arterial that is oriented east to west, from El Camino Real to Calle Acewo. It sewes as the primary access to the La Costa Valley residential community, which features single family residential homes, an elementary school and a daycare center/preschool. Calle Barcelona has a design speed of 40 miles per hour. The Engineering and Traffic Survey found the critical speeds to be significantly higher, therefore the posted speed limit on Calle Barcelona is 45 miles per hour. Continuing, Mr. Kim mentioned that between El Camino Real and Rancho Santa Fe Road, Calle Barcelona is fully improved with curb and gutter, sidewalks, bike lanes and street lights on both sides of the street. The curb-to-curb width is 64 feet. Calle Barcelona is controlled by traffic signals at El Camino Real and at Rancho Santa Fe Road. There is an ALL-WAY STOP at Paseo Aliso, but otherwise all the other intersections on Calle Barcelona between El Camino Real and Rancho Santa Fe Road are uncontrolled. There is a pedestrian overpass that is adjacent to the daycare facility located approximately 1,320 feet west of Paseo Avetlano. Mr. Kim stated that the minimum comer sight for a 45 mile per hour roadway is 495 feet. Staff measured the sight distance at the intersection and ascertained that the sight distance was 745 feet to the east and 1,140 feet to the west, which is significantly greater than the 495 foot requirement for comer sight distance. To the east of Paseo Avellano the roadway grade of Calle Barcelona is 7.5% and immediately to the west the roadway grade is 5.33%. In addition, there is a 100 foot vertical cuwe that runs through the intersection which flattens out the grades. Staff conducted an ALL-WAY STOP Warrant Analysis based on Caltrans guidelines. The results are as follows: There are three warrants for the ALL-WAY STOP warrant. The first warrant is the Interim Traffic Control Measure. This warrant is used when a traffic signal is ’urgently needed” and an ALL-WAY STOP can be used as an interim measure. Staff performed a Traffic Signal Warrant Analysis at the intersection and only one of the eleven warrants was satisfied. Based on observations, accidents records and traffic volumes, staff was of the opinion that a traffic signal at this location is not “urgently needed” as required by this warrant. Therefore, Warrant 1 is not satisfied. Warrant 2 is based on Accident Experience. There have been no traffic collisions of arty type reported at this intersection. Therefore Warrant 2 is not satisfied. Warrant 3 is based on Minimum Traffic Volumes. This warrant requires that the total vehicular volume entering the intersection is 500 vehicles per hour for any 8 hours of an average day. In addition, it requires that 200 vehicles and or pedestrians come from the minor street for the same 8 hours. Lastly, the average delay to minor street vehicular traffic must be at least 30 seconds per vehicle during the October 1,2001 A TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSION Page 3 peak hours. There is a condition on this warrant that if the 85 percentile speed, or the critical speed, is 40 miles per hour or more a reduced set of criteria may be used for the volume. The critical speed of Calle Barcelona, in the vicinity of Paseo Avellano, is 47 miles per hour. Therefore, the volume criteria are reduced to 350 for the total volume and 140 for the minor street. Referring to Table 1 in the staff report, Mr. Kim commented that the volume requirements for the total volume and the minor street volumes are satisfied for each of the 8 hour periods. Delay for the minor street traffic was found to be approximately 7 seconds. Noting that numerous Traffic Signal and STOP warrant analysis have been conducted, Mr. Kim mentioned that in staffs experience the delay warrants, as dictated by Caltrans, have not been satisfied in general. Since, the volume requirements have been met and based on staff's experience that the Caltrans delay portion of the warrant is very conservative, staff considers Warrant 3 to be satisfied. In conclusion, Mr. Kim stated that based upon the results of the ALL-WAY STOP Warrant Analysis and observations by staff, the Traffic Safety Coordinating Committee recommends that an ALL-WAY STOP intersection be established at Calle Barcelona and Paseo Avellano. Vice Chairperson Jim Courtney opened public testimony. PUBLIC TESTIMONY: Hearing no one wishing to testify, Vice Chairperson Jim Courtney closed public testimony. Ms. Navis, unable to attend the meeting, sent a letter that will become part of the record. vice Chairperson Jim Courtney asked if there were questions of staff. Commissioner Gillfillan commented that volume appeared to be the final decision making issue. Mr. Kim replied yes and clarified Caltrans standards. Commissioner Gillfillan asked if there was a method to relate the 7-second delay to a level of service. Mr. Kim stated not at this time, but noted that the delay did exist and was measurable. Robert Johnson, Deputy Ciy Engineer, Transportation Division, commented that if a HCM analysis were conducted, a 7 second delay would be LOS A, which is the highest level of service. Noting that this request could be emotionally driven, Commissioner Gillfillan asked if more than one individual requested the establishment of this ALL-WAY STOP. Although there have been no other requests from citizens, Mr. Kim stated that he was not aware of Ms. Navis' motivations, and assured the Commission that staff was not approaching the issue from an emotional standpoint. Mr. Johnson commented that to his knowledge Ms. Navis was the only individual requesting the establishment of the ALL-WAY STOP. He stated that no other letters, telephone calls or emails have been received pertaining to this issue. Mr. Johnson advised the Commission that it is not necessary for a petition to be submitted with a certain number of signatures, before staff will investigate and take appropriate action. Adding that one individual can initiate a traffic study request, it is up to staff and the Commission to make their best recommendation on the appropriate traffic control for a particular location. October 1,2001 TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSION Page 4 Referring to the turning movement diagrams, Commissioner Gillfillan asked if the concern was the northbound to westbound movement. Mr. Kim replied that the turning movement counts were conducted during the school periods, i.e. the hour and a half before school begins and the hour and a half after school was out. The peak hour of the hour and a half was tabulated for the turning movement counts. Commissioner Gillfillan commented that the beneficiary of the installation of the ALL-WAY STOP would appear to be the northbound to westbound movement. Mr. Johnson advised the Commission that another way to analyze the data is look at the potential conflict on Calle Barcelona. Is there a need to assign the right-of-way because of left turns off of Calle Barcelona that might be conflicting with the opposing through movement? The higher left turns and the higher opposing through movement does occur on Calle Barcelona. Commissioner Gillfillan questioned where Ms. Navis lived and speculated that her issue was going westbound on Calle Barcelona. Vice Chairperson Jim Courtney commented that if Ms. Navis lived on the north side she might have trouble entering and exiting and making left turns off of Calle Barcelona. Commissioner Mertz mentioned that Ms. Navis' letter indicated that she was concerned about pedestrian traffic. Commissioner Gillfillan commented that there were zero pedestrians, so her concem was a non-issue. Commissioner Mettz questioned if the new development along Rancho Santa Fe Road would use the school in the Aviara subdivision. He noted that this could cause an increase in traffic on Calle Barcelona. Mr. Johnson stated that there would be an increase in traffic due to the development of new residential dwellings south of Calle Barcelona that will use Paseo Avellano. He noted that there would be a new school in the Alga Norte park area, which is north of Dove, east of El Camino Real. In addition, the other two portions of the village that are near La Costa Avenue and Rancho Santa Fe Road will go to the Mission Estancia Elementary School or El Camino Creek Elementary. The villages are comprised of three separate villages. He mentioned that the only other new school in the area is in the Alga Node park area. With the general development in the area there is a mini shopping center being constructed at the intersection of La Costa and Rancho Santa Fe Road, which may attract additional volume on Calle Barcelona. Referring to Table 1, Mr. Johnson stated that the side street volumes with the 70% reduction criteria are met. The 500 vehicle criteria is far exceeded in most cases of the 8 hours and there was no reduction needed to meet that criteria. As there were no more questions of staff, Vice Chairperson Jim Courtney called for a discussion. DISCUSSION: As the only way to justify the installation of the ALL-WAY STOP was via the exemption to reduce the volume criteria to 70%, vice Chairperson Jim Courtney commented that based on the turning movements and volumes in the intersection, he was not convinced that an ALL-WAY STOP was needed. He questioned if using only one warrant with the reduced criteria was valid. October 1,2001 TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSION Page 5 Mr. Johnson stated that the key item to remember is that the 70% criteria reduction is because of the higher critical speed on Calle Barcelona. Once a potential ALL-WAY STOP intersection has a street that has a critical speed greater than 40 miles per hour, there is recognition that can cause problems especially on a multi-lane street, e.g. minimal acceptable gaps, judgment on the side street, drivers ability to turn on or turning from the major street to the side street. This is why CalTrans placed the criteria for reduction in the guidelines. Noting that there have been no traffic accidents in four years, no pedestrian problems, and there is a bridge for pedestrian crossing for school access, Vice Chairpelson Jim Courtney sees no demonstrated need for the ALL-WAY STOP and voiced his opposition. Commissioner Schall believed that Ms. Navis used the pedestrian’s and children crossing the street as her reasoning for the establishing of the STOP signs, but it does not appear to be the problem. He mentioned that Ms. Navis might have wanted the traffic to slow down. He questioned if traffic could be slowed down by the installation of STOP signs and suggested that adequate posting of the prima facie speed might solve the problem. Mr. Johnson commented that if the ivue was speeding there is a posted 45 miles per hour speed limit, and noted that tRecciti speec-was 47 miles per hour. Because of the critical speed of 47 miles per hour, speeding does not appear to a problem. Noting that it was important to keep the thoroughfares moving, commissioner Schall stated that the street should be convenient for its intended purpose. Placing a STOP sign at this location could potential cause traffic problems on contiguous streets. Commissioner Gillfillan stated that what is at issue is doing the right thing for the community overall. He voiced concern that placement of the STOP sign where requested would change the classification of the road and suggested that the best solution in the long term would be the installation of a traffic signal. He suggested that staff look into the placement of signage indicating that pedestrian crossing is not allowed on Calle Barcelona. Mr. Gillfillan questioned if Ms. Navis lived in the vicinity of Calle Barcelona and Paseo Avellano and noted that if she does in fact live adjacent to the aforementioned streets, her request would have more value. If future dialogue with Ms. Navis takes place, he directed staff to ascertain where Ms. Navis lived. He noted that he was not in support of the request for the ALL-WAY STOP. Commissioner Mertz asked how closed the warrants were to justify the installation of a traffic signal at the intersection of Calle Barcelona and Paseo Avellano. Mr. Kim replied that a Traffic Signal Warrant Analysis was conducted and one of the eleven Cabrans warrants was meet. Mr. Johnson stated that at the January 2002 meeting, the 2002 Traffic Signal Evaluation Policy would be brought before the Commission with an updated qualification list. He noted that any intersection location that meets one or more Caltrans warrants would be included on the list. To establish the priority listing there will be an evaluation based on the seven criteria. Traditionally, each of the intersections that only meet one warrant, especially Warrant 5, Progressive Movement, usually have very low points and are placed near the bottom of the priority list. Vice Chairperson Jim Courtney closed discussion and called for a motion. October 1,2001 ,- TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSION Page 6 MOTION: ACTION: Motion by Commissioner Mertz, and duly seconded, not to establish an ALL-WAY STOP at the intersection of Calle Barcelona and Paseo Avellano. VOTE: 4-0-0 AYES: Mertz, Schall, Courtney, Gillfillan NOES: None ABSTAIN: None ITEM 7 REPORT FROM TRAFFIC COMMISSIONERS Referring to the overhead slide, Commissioner Gillfillan noted that where the road connects into Segovia and the curve connects back into Levante, he mentioned that the area was mostly model homes sites and voiced concern about the construction vehicles that are parked on both sides of the street due to the tight conditions. He asked if parking could be limited to one side of the street. Mr. Johnson responded that the street in question was a 40 foot street, therefore parking was allowed on both sides of the street. He indicated that because of the roadway curvature he would have staff monitor the street. In addition, he stated that staff will check with inspection regarding the construction vehicles that are parked on the street and what kind of approval they have for parking. Vice Chairperson Jim Courtney commented that the problem would be solved, when the construction on the other side of El Camino Real is completed and once the area is built-out. ITEM 8 REPORT FROM TRAFFIC ENGINEER None ADJOURNMENT: By proper motion the Regular Meeting of October 1,2001, was adjourned at 3:35 p;m. Respectfully submitted, Dianna Scott Minutes Clerk