Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda Report - August 4, 1982 (53)P -a- x-43 'Qn-Hak C S 0. CITY COUNCIL MEETING AUGUST 4, 1982 Council was reminded that sometime ago, the City had received a petition from approximately 10o residents ®,' the City requesting stop signs be established on Lee Avenue at Park Street,. The petition states that stop signs will be beneficial to safaty because of increased traffic volumes, excessive speeding and the number of children playing in the area. REQUEST FOR It is assumed that the request is to install stop signs on INSTALLATION OF Lee at Park and to remove the yield signs on Park at Lee STOP SIGNS LEE since the primary reason appears to be speed control. Staff AND PARK DENIED reports that a four-way stop is not warranted, and it would not be legal to have both the stop and yield signs at this type of intersection. The Engineering Division has completed a study of traffic conditions in this area and detailed report was provided to the Council. Following a lengt-hy discussion, Council, on motion of Council Member Pinkerton, Reid second, concurred with Staff's recommendation and denied the request for stop signs at Lee Avenue at Park Street, and requested that the Police Depart- ment use radar enforcement to cite drivers exceeding reason- able speeds. _ x t r X 4 a5 rAv y �- as c x f 4: ti J clj: '----- ,! CITY OF LODI PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT TO: City Council FROM: City Manager DATE: July 30, 1982 SUBJECT: Lee/Park Stop Sign Request COUNCIL COMMUNICATION 1 RECOMMENDED ACTION: That the request for stop signs at Lee Avenue at Park treet be denied, and that the Police Department be req jested to use radar en- forcement to cite drivers exceeding reasonable speeds. BACKGROUND INFORMATION: The City of Lodi has received a petition from appro xi - mate y 100 residents oT the City requesting stop signs on Lee Avenue at Park Street. The petition states that stop signs will be beneficial to safety because of in- creased traffic volumes, excessive speeding and the number of children pla-/:ng in the area. it is assumed that the request is to install stop signs on Lee at Park and to remove the yield signs on Park at Lee since the primary reason appears to be speed control. A four-way stop is not warranted, and it would not be legal to have both stop and yield signs at this type of intersection. CONDITIONS T e Engineering Division has completed a study of traffic conditions on this portion of Lee Avenue as shown on the attached sketch and submits the following information: 1. Lee Avenue is a 37 -foot wide residential street which stops for Vine Street at the north end of the study area and Kettleman Lane at the south. Intersecting cross s'reets (Park Street and Tam- arack Drive) yield for Lee Avenue and two T -intersections (Sierra Vista Place and Sycamore Drive) are uncontrolled. 2. There is a 25 mph prima facie speed limit on the street. (1) A prima facie limit is one which, "on the fa -e cf it," is reasonably and prudent under normal conditions. Certain blanket (or automatic) prima facie limits are established by law, including the 15 mph limit in alleys, blind intersections, and at blind railroad crossings, and the 25 mph limit in business ant' residence districts. There is also a part-time 25 mph limit in school zones when children are present enroute to or from school. APPROVED: FILE N0. HENRY A. GLAVES. City Mananer City Co unc i 1 •• ••••••••••••:::••••��� July 30, 1982 Page 2 3. Traffic counts taken on Lee Avenue south of Sycamore Street on February i , 2, and 3, 1982, (Pion., Tues, & Wed.) showed an average of 432 vehicles daily. Counts taken on Marcie 5, 6, and 7, 1979, (Mon., Tues, Wed.) showed an average of 431 vehicles daily. Traffic volumes on Park Street are approximately 340 vehicles daily. For comparison, counts taken on Pleasant Ave. are approximately 380 vehicles daily. 4. The results of a speed survey taken July 7 and 8, 1982, are as follows: !^CATION DIRECTt*ON HIGHEST AVERAGE 85th PERCENTILE OF TRAVEL SPEED SFEED SPEED South of Park Northbound 43 mpii- 27.7 33.0 South of Park Southbound 45 mph 25.7 30.7 North of Park Northbound 39 mph 25.2 32.2 North of Park Southbound 35 mph 22.3 28.3 Average - 31.0 The 85th Qercentile speed is the speed at or below which 85% of the traffic is moving. Most citizens can be relied upon to behave in a reasonable mai:ner and the 85th percentile speed is the one char- acteristic of traffic speeds mo -..t nearly conforming to a safe, reasonable and Prudent limit. The 15% of drivers exceeding this speed are considered to be driving faster than is safe under existing con- ditions. A safe and reasonable speed for tie portion of Lee Avenue which was studied, would be 31 mph. For comparison, the 85th per- centile on Pleasant Ave. was 30.5 mph and the average 25.5 mph. 5. There have been three reported accidents on Lee Avenue between Kettleman Lane and Bine Street since yield signs were installed in March of 1979, the last one being in November of 1980. GUIDE,.INES FOR 2 -WAY STOP SIGNS, none of which are met at this intersection: 1. On tine less important road at its intersection with a main road where application of the nor- mal right of way rule is unduly hazardous ss evidenced by accidents suscepuNe of correc­ tion '?y STOP signs. & On a counh, road or city street at its internw- tions with a state highway. & At the intersection of two main hi3hways. The highway traffic to be stopped depends on W proach speeds, volumes, and turning move- ments. 4. On a street entering a legally established through highway or street. 5. On a minor street where the safe approach speed to the intersection is less than 10 miles per hour. STOO SIGNS FOR SPEED CONTROL The Manual on Uniform Traffic Com rol Devices for Streets & High -jays, The Traffic Manual fir the State of California, The Transportation & Traffic r] City Coulsc i 1 July 30, 1982 Page 3 r] Engineering Handbook or any recognized authority in the field of Traffic Engineering, will agree that stop signs should not be installed for speed control. The Engineer- ing Division realizes that denial o—these recr;r,sts will engender- considerable erxD- tional feelings with residents of the area and we therefore submit the following for consideration: TRAFFIC ENGINEERING, Nov. 1976 City officials are frequently confronted by citimns demanding that stop signs he placed on resdcntial streets to control speeding. These citizens arc convinced that stop sign will reduce specds on their streets, thereby enhancing the safety of children playing near or in the streets. City councils usually respond fa- vorably to these requests in order to pro. vide a tungible sign of "r concern for public safety at a relatively low cast. Moreover, it seems obvious to them also that stop signs wiN reduce speeds and promote public fet . t4� _ti a f�11�ft* gff1► bC ILL. stullcd [or meed control. One argument this is that misuse of this traffic con- trol device promotes lack of respect for all traffic control devices. and nonob- servance of such devices is potentially hazardous. Perhaps a more effective ar- gumcnt is that stop signs are rror cffw4yf* . . in reducing spools. Recent studies'"_ suggest that placing stop signs for speed corttm] tends to increase peat spoeds. The stud- ies also showed an alarmingly high dis- obedience rate for WAaa signs. The studies conducted show that stop signs are not effcc- tivc in controlling speeds in residential ureas. The dilltrence in average speeds is not significant after installation of stop signs but the tendency is for a slight increase in speeds, possibly because mo- torists are trying to make up for lost time after passing the sign." e stop sign ohilervunec studies showed that stop signs ptacrd for speed control arc gcocrally disregarded. Ap- prusimatcly half of the aus-)rists made a rolling stop; one ouarla came eo a full stop; one quarter did not stop :It all.- i City Council July 30, 1982 Page 4 INSTITUTE OF TRANSPORATION ENGINEERS, Jan. 1977 A stop sign is one of our most valuable and effective conuml diavices vjhen Used at the right place and under the right conditions.One common misuse of stop signs is to arbitrarily interrupt through traffic, either by causing it to stop, or by causing such an inconvenience as to force the traffic to use other routes. Where stop signs are installed as "nuisances" or "speed breakers," there is a high incidence of intentional violation. In those Iccations where vehic!rs do stop, the speed reduction is effective only in the immediate vicinity of the stop sign, and fr-quently speeds are actually higher between intersections. For these reasons, it should not be used as a speed control device. " SUMMARY 1. The basic rule for establishing "reasonable and prudent" speeds, is that under normal conditions 85% of drivers drive at a reasonable speed, or below, and 15% exceed that speed. -2. Traffic volumes have not increased on Lee Avenue in the past 3 years. 3. There has not been an accident problem on Lee Avenue. 4. Normal practice would be to stop the lowest volume street at an intersection. In this area, that street is Park, which might tend to increase speeds on Lee. 5. This request, if granted, would tend to increase like requests, with the ultimate solution being installation of 2 -way stops at Lee and Tamarack, Pleasant and Tamarack, and Pleasant and Park in this area. This would make both Park and Tamarack through streets. Similar requests from similar areas could eventually lead to stop signs at every intersection based on which street files a petition first, a system that, to the motorist, is wasteful of energy, time consuming, and frustrating. RECOMMENDATION 1. That the request for stop signs on Lee Avenue at Park Street be denied, and 2. That the Police Department be requested to use radar enforcement o cite drivers exceeding reasonable speeds. I' 1 ,Jack L. Ronsko ubl�c Works Director cc: Police Department Mrs. Hewitt JLR/eeh '4 CITrOF LOLL • • PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT 1 NT � F?SEGT 10N 1.._ g. L* PARK ST. Tt2AFF lC iNV�.Si'IGA�ION � J ema�>v• le i a , fn EX 15T 1 wry STOP EXISTING YIELD CZ EQu I✓STE0 15TOP Approvo4 by Pvbllc worh. Db.ctor Dote RCE August 16, 1982 Mrs. Paula Hewitt 1101 S. Lee Avenue Lodi, California 95240 Dear Mrs. Hewitt: Please be advised that following consideration of your request for stop signs at Lee Avenue at Park Street at its regular meeting of August 4, the Lodi City Council, following a staff report and recommendation, denied your request,. however, asked that the Lodi Police Department be requested to use radar enforcement to cite drivers exceeding reasonable speeds in that area. Thank you for bringing this item of concern to the City Council's attention and should you have any questions regarding their actions, please do not hesitate to call this office. It is my understanding that you were forwarded a complete copy of staff's report and recommendation. Very truly yours, Alice M. Reimche City Clerk AMR f 1 f CITY COl7NCIL HENRY A GLAVES, Ir. FRED M REID. Maya C I O TO City Manager ROBERT G MURPHY. " 1 1 j 1 J I 1 ALICE M REIhtCHE Mayor Pro Tempore CITY HAIL. 221 WEST PINE STREFI City Clerk CVEIYN M OLSON POST OFFICE BOX 320 RONALD M STEIN JAMES W PINK[RTON. It LODI. CALIFORNIA 95241 City Attorney IOHN R (Randy) SNIDE R i (209) 334.5634 j F August 16, 1982 Mrs. Paula Hewitt 1101 S. Lee Avenue Lodi, California 95240 Dear Mrs. Hewitt: Please be advised that following consideration of your request for stop signs at Lee Avenue at Park Street at its regular meeting of August 4, the Lodi City Council, following a staff report and recommendation, denied your request,. however, asked that the Lodi Police Department be requested to use radar enforcement to cite drivers exceeding reasonable speeds in that area. Thank you for bringing this item of concern to the City Council's attention and should you have any questions regarding their actions, please do not hesitate to call this office. It is my understanding that you were forwarded a complete copy of staff's report and recommendation. Very truly yours, Alice M. Reimche City Clerk AMR f 1 f