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The Millwood City Council received an overview of traffic patterns on municipal streets on Monday night, paving the way for a series of safety upgrades throughout residential neighborhoods.
Matt Gillis of Welch/Comer Engineers provided a summary of a survey taken in October that monitored vehicle counts and speeds in a dozen different zones. The report was commissioned by the city in September following increased concerns from residents about reckless driving in certain areas of town, particularly along Fowler and Empire roads.
Gillis spoke to city leaders at the Sept. 7 council meeting about a variety of traffic calming measures that could be implemented to reduce speeding on the two roads in question. Butler Road was later added to the list. At the time, Gillis brought up options such as additional signage, portable radar and police patrols.
Millwood Mayor Dan Mork said the city would seek detailed information about traffic speeds and volume before deciding on a certain strategy.
The data Gillis presented on Dec. 7 included results from two separate surveys involving half-a-dozen locations each. The reports were taken on Oct. 20-22 and Oct. 27-29.
Gillis said the goal of the survey was threefold – first, to establish the average daily traffic along each street; secondly, to track the peak traffic times during each day (rush hour, lunch hour, etc.) and finally to record the 85th percentile speed, or the speed at which 85 percent of vehicles travel at or below.
The average speed on Butler, between Empire and Trent, came in at 31 mph, or 6 mph over the posted speed limit of 25 mph. On Liberty Avenue, between Hutchinson and Argonne, the discrepancy was higher – 34 mph in a 25 mph zone.
Traffic volume increased on most streets during the morning drive time between 6 and 7 a.m. and the evening commute between 5 and 6 p.m.
Mayor Pro Tem Kevin Freeman said it would be helpful to track traffic patterns to show if motorists were taking side streets to avoid major intersections like the one at Argonne and Trent. Residents on Fowler have indicated that vehicles cut across their street from Trent. Freeman added that radar devices on side streets may be an option.
“We need to start looking at something to get the speed down,” he said. “We obviously have some issues in town.”
The city paid for traffic emphasis patrols on several streets during the Argonne Road reconstruction project this summer. Most of the violations involved speeding and running traffic signs.
Earlier this year, Millwood citizen Jeannie Pearson told the City Council how a speeding vehicle ran through a side fence on the west side of her home on Fowler, causing serious damage to the yard. Mike Ellis, another resident who lives on Fowler, said the narrow street presents a number of safety concerns.
“This road is 21 feet wide and the average speed is 35 miles per hour,” he said.
In addition to traffic patrols and radar devices, Gillis said that implements like traffic circles (smaller renditions of roundabouts) and chicanes (engineered features that create extra turns in the roadway) could also help reduce speeds.
Mork said there would likely be a public meeting in mid-January to review the results of the latest traffic survey.
Gillis said it would be up to the city as far as what happened next.
“This is basically a study to show them what they have,” he said. “The next step is to see what improvements need to be made.”
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By
Craig Howard
