Melvin Avenue Traffic Calming

Virtual Public Meeting 11/29/2022

Watch the meeting here

Public Comments have closed as of December 30th, 2022.

MELVIN AVENUE TRAFFIC CALMING PILOT PROJECT

Pilot Project History

• WACA Board requests traffic-calming to address speeding concerns
• The City conducted traffic study (August 2021) to determine traffic volumes and speeds
• Traffic Data results presented to Board
• Traffic Calming design and locations prepared
• WACA Board conducts Community Outreach for pilot project and sign off by Melvin Avenue residents
• Temporary traffic-calming measures installed for minimum 6-month period to measure the effectiveness prior to permanent installation (October 2021 and March 2022)
• Post pilot traffic data collected (June 2022)
• Community meeting to discuss results (September 2022)
• Design changes developed by public works engineers based on feedback (October 2022)
• Modified design presentation (November 2022)

Traffic Calming Measures Considered (please see report below for detailed information)

• Neighborhood Traffic Circles eliminated because of safety issues for cyclists and pedestrians
• Speed Bumps/Humps eliminated because of issues with emergency response and public works equipment
• Chicanes eliminated because of conflicts with driveways and bike lanes
• Stop Signs This is not an option as federal and state standards specifically state that they are not to be used for speed control. None of the intersections along Melvin Avenue meet the criteria for Stop sign installation.
• Bump outs / Curb Extensions would eliminate parking and have little effect on speeding since they maintain the existing wide travel and bike lanes.
• Islands / Medians used alone these would have little affect on speeding
• Chokers Motorists are encouraged to travel more slowly at intersections or mid-block locations with chokers, as the reduced street width provides a visual cue to motorists

Temporary Pilot Project

The pilot project is a temporary installation of traffic-calming measures using temporary materials and signs so that DPW can measure the effectiveness of the traffic-calming before a permanent installation is considered. The first two chokers were installed in October 2021 and the third in March 2022. Traffic data, including volumes and speeds, were collected before and after installation to determine the effectiveness of the traffic-calming measure. After receiving feedback by phone, email and at the public meeting DPW created a new proposal for choker locations. Moving the chokers to the intersections instead of mid-block will lessen the impact on parking and moving the third choker further down will address higher speeds at that location. Please see below the original and proposed new locations.