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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2008-07-07; Traffic Safety Commission; MinutesMINUTES MEETING OF: TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSION DATE OF MEETING: July 7,2008 (Regular Meeting) TIME OF MEETING: 3:00 p.m. PLACE OF MEETING: City Council Chambers CALL TO ORDER: Chair Roney called the Meeting to order at 3:00 p.m. ROLL CALL: Present: Chair Guy Roney Commissioner Steve Dorsey Commissioner Jack Gumming Absent: Vice-Chair Gordon Cress Staff Members Present: Robert Johnson, City Engineer Lt. Don Rawson, Carlsbad Police Department APPROVAL OF MINUTES: April 7,2008 ACTION: Motion by Commissioner Dorsey, and duly seconded by Commissioner Cumming, to approve the minutes of the regular meeting on April 7,2008, as presented. VOTE: 3-0-0 AYES: Roney, Dorsey, Cumming NOES: None ABSTAIN: None There were no Traffic Safety Commission meetings held in May or June 2008. ITEM 4 - ORAL COMMUNICATIONS: None. July 7,2008 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page 2 ITEM 5 - PREVIOUS BUSINESS: Robert Johnson, City Engineer, reported that several months ago the Traffic Safety Commission recommended a No Parking zone on a portion of the south side of Camino de los Coches to facilitate the striping of an additional eastbound lane near La Costa Canyon High School. Staff will have that work completed this summer when school is out. The City Council is scheduled to introduce this ordinance on July 15th to establish the No Parking zone. It is expected that City Council will adopt the ordinance July 22nd and then the Streets Department crew would do the restriping prior to the commencement of school. ITEM 6 - NEW BUSINESS: ITEM 6A: Update Carlsbad Municipal Code (CMC) Chapter 10.32 by the revision of section 10.32.091 to designate El Fuerte Street from Palomar Airport Road to Faraday Avenue as a truck route. Mr. Johnson informed the Commission that this item to consider establishing El Fuerte Street from Palomar Airport Road to Faraday Avenue as a truck route. Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 10.32.091 designates the truck routes in the City of Carlsbad and trucks over 14,000 pounds gross vehicle weight rating (G.V.W.R.) are restricted to using streets designated as truck routes. Only when that vehicle or truck over seven tons G.V.W.R. is in the vicinity of their destination can they deviate from the established truck route. There are some exceptions when the vehicle that is over seven tons G.V.W.R. can be on a non-designated truck route. An example would be a moving van. When the moving van gets close to its destination, they would leave the truck route and travel through the residential areas to the destination residence. Other reasons for a truck or vehicle over seven tons G.V.W.R. to be on a non-designated truck route is if it is an authorized emergency vehicle, a trash truck servicing a particular area, or vehicles that may be detoured off the truck route due to some type of incident. Mr. Johnson mentioned that in the Carlsbad industrial corridor where there are a number of industrial parks, truck routes include such streets as Palomar Airport Road, El Camino Real, Faraday Avenue, and the portion of Melrose Drive north of Palomar Airport Road, among others. For the subject segment of El Fuerte Street between Palomar Airport Road and Faraday Avenue, El Fuerte Street is 0.72 miles in length. It is a designated Secondary Arterial on the Circulation Element of the General Plan and it has a curb-to-curb width that varies from 64 feet and 82 feet. The 82 foot section is between Palomar Airport Road and the intersection of Loker Avenue East and West. Relatively low traffic volumes exist currently on the subject portion of El Fuerte Street and those volumes range from approximately 2,475 vehicles per day to 4,975 vehicles per day based on an April 2008 traffic count. The segment of El Fuerte Street being discussed can accommodate the large trucks and it serves the industrial land uses in the vicinity. The pavement structural section has been designed and July 7,2008 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page 3 constructed to carry the heavier truck weights. This portion of El Fuerte Street would connect to currently established truck routes, namely Palomar Airport Road and Faraday Avenue. Mr. Johnson stated that the matter was discussed by the Traffic Safety Coordinating Committee who recommends that a truck route be designated on El Fuerte Street from Palomar Airport Road northerly to Faraday Avenue. DISCUSSION Chair Roney asked if there were any issues with enforcement Using a truck route since some people in the past have complained. In general, are there problems with trucks on non-truck routes? Lt. Rawson answered that there is some frequency with complaints on the major streets. There are still some questions on La Costa Avenue and Calle Barcelona. As a member of the Traffic Safety Coordinating Committee, Lt. Rawson stated he would support this action as a police lieutenant because it is an area where there are a lot of commercial businesses and a lot of trucks. All the streets around it are truck routes. If this street was posted as not being a truck route, he could see it being used because of the "proximity to their businesses." There would probably be violations here. Therefore, he supports the recommendation. They still get calls. It hasn't been as frequent as the Police Department experienced about a year ago when the issue came before the Commission. Mr. Johnson explained that the frequency of complaints is diminishing just a little because the construction activity is not as large or on-going as it was about a year ago. Many of the areas that they received the complaints about are finished with their construction or they are to the point in their construction where the contractor is not having the large truck hauls, such as the asphalt and the road base. This is being seen throughout the City - the major construction is starting to diminish. Although, in the Robertson Ranch area, there are still some complaints about some of the truck routes, and that development is in its initial stage, so the complaints may continue. Fortunately, in the south part of the City, the Villages of La Costa development is now to the point where homes are either constructed or constructed to the point where the complaints are very few. There are still some complaints on El Fuerte Street north of Alga Road. MOTION: ACTION: Motion by Commissioner Cumming, and duly seconded by Commissioner Dorsey, to approve the recommendation of the Traffic Safety Coordinating Committee to designate El Fuerte Street as a truck route from Palomar Airport Road to Faraday Avenue. VOTE: 3-0-0 AYES: Roney, Dorsey, Cumming NOES: None ABSTAIN: None July 7,2008 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page 4 ITEM 6B: Establish a prima facie speed limit upon El Fuerte Street from Palomar Airport Road to its intersection with Faraday Avenue. Mr. Johnson explained that this item is the same street segment of El Fuerte Street from Palomar Airport Road to its intersection with Faraday Avenue as in the previous item. This item concerns the establishment of a prima facie speed limit. This segment of El Fuerte Street is designated as a Secondary Arterial on the Circulation Element of the General Plan. It is 0.72 miles in length with the curb-to-curb varying 64 feet and 82 feet. The ADT range from approximately 2,475 vehicles per day to 4,975 vehicles per day based on an April 2008 traffic count. Mr. Johnson commented that the segment of El Fuerte Street from the intersection of Loker Avenue East/West northerly to Faraday Avenue opened to traffic in February of 2008, and it has been striped with four traffic lanes, two in each direction, separated by a painted median. There are bicycle lanes on both sides of the street, curb, gutter, sidewalk and street lights. The portion of El Fuerte Street south of the Loker East/West intersection is basically the widened portion without the striped bike lanes, although this segment also has a striped median. To establish a prima facie speed limit, an Engineering and Traffic Survey is required by state law to be conducted. Staff conducted the Engineering and Traffic Survey and results indicated that at the measured location the critical speed, or 85th percentile speed, was 43 miles per hour. The pace speed had 90 percent of the vehicles within the pace speed, which was 35 miles per hour to 45 miles per hour. Mr. Johnson indicated that the Traffic Safety Coordinating Committee (TSCC) examined the results of the Engineering and Traffic Survey and based upon the critical speed, the good safety record, the arterial road classification, and the roadway design standards, the recommendation from the TSCC was to establish a 45 mile per hour prima facie speed limit upon El Fuerte Street from Palomar Airport Road to Faraday Avenue. This would be consistent with what is posted south of Palomar Airport Road. DISCUSSION Commission Gumming asked about Faraday Avenue between Melrose Drive and east of Orion, which is posted as 40 miles per hour. He recalled that was an interim posting when the road opened. Since the Commission is now setting a prima facie speed limit on El Fuerte Street which it intersects with, when will the Commission revisit Faraday Avenue? Mr. Johnson replied that it is staffs intent to bring the Engineering and Traffic Survey for Faraday Avenue from Orion Street to the east City limits back to the Commission either at the August meeting or October meeting. Commissioner Dorsey commented that he wanted to commend the author of the staff report, drawing attention to the third paragraph on page 1 under "setting speed limits," which really defines the July 7,2008 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page 5 essence of establishing prima facie speed limits. He recommended that each Commissioner have this memorized so that they never lose sight of exactly what the process is all about and how they achieve this outcome. MOTION: ACTION: Motion by Commissioner Dorsey, and duly seconded by Commissioner Gumming, to establish a 45 mile per hour prima facie speed limit upon El Fuerte Street from Palomar Airport Road to Faraday Avenue. VOTE: 3-0-0 AYES: Roney, Dorsey, Gumming NOES: None ABSTAIN: None ITEM6C: Elect a new Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson of the Traffic Safety Commission to serve from August 2008 through July 2009. Mr. Johnson mentioned that this item was at the discretion of the Traffic Safety Commission. He received an e-mail from Vice-Chair Gordon Cress indicating that if it was the pleasure of the Commission to nominate and appointment him as Chair for the next year, he would be more than happy to accept that position. Mr. Cress has served as Chairperson in the past. Due to the rotation and several vacancies from Commissioners who have resigned, Commissioner Cress is coming up a little quicker hi the rotation for the Chairperson position than he normally would. Typically, the Vice-Chair moves to the Chair position. As mentioned, Commissioner Cress is more than happy to accept the Chairperson position for August 2008 through July 2009. MOTION: ACTION: Motion by Commissioner Dorsey, and duly seconded by Chair Roney, to elect Commissioner Gordon Cress as Chair and Commissioner Jack Cumming as Vice-Chan* to serve from August 2008 through July 2009. VOTE: 3-0-0 AYES: Roney, Dorsey, Cumming NOES: None ABSTAIN: None Commissioner Cumming abstained from voting for himself for the Vice-Chair position. July 7,2008 Traffic Safety Commission Meeting Page 6 ITEM 7: REPORT FROM TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMISSIONERS None. ITEM 8: REPORT FROM TRAFFIC ENGINEER Mr. Johnson mentioned that the Traffic Safety Commission vacancy that currently exists is not scheduled to be filled at the next City Council meeting on July 15, 2008. The mayor's office is waiting until there are sufficient applications for the Mayor and City Council to review. The next regular meeting of the Traffic Safety Commission is scheduled to be held on August 4, 2008 at 3:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers. ADJOURNMENT: By proper motion, Chair Roney adjourned the Regular Meeting of July 7, 2008 at 3:19 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Ruth Woodbeck Minutes Clerk