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Prattville Traffic Calming Policy Draft DRAFT Draft Neighborhood Traffic Calming Policy City of Prattville, AL The Neighborhood Traffic Calming Policy is intended to aid citizens in resolving traffic problems in residential areas. This policy has been formed to encourage citizen involvement in neighborhood traffic management activities. Issues such as reducing the average speed of traffic and minimizing vehicular traffic on local neighborhood streets require careful study. The following procedures are considered typical for receiving, responding to, and managing citizens’ requests for traffic management on their streets or in their neighborhoods. Variations in this process may be approved by the City Engineer when deemed appropriate due to unique circumstances. The following step-by- step procedures are shown graphically in Appendix A. Procedures Step 1: Community Support A resident who desires to present neighborhood traffic problems or concerns to the City is encouraged to complete a Traffic Calming Request Form and submit it to the City Engineer’s office. The Form requires at least one resident’s signature, but additional spaces are provided for others from the affected area as well. If the residences along the street are part of an active Homeowner’s Association (HOA), the Form should be completed by a representative of the HOA. Step 2: Initial Review After receiving the Traffic Calming Request Form, the City’s engineering staff will conduct an initial review of the requested street. The following criteria will be evaluated to determine whether further consideration and evaluation of traffic calming measures is warranted: Minimum Criteria for Initial Review* • • • • The posted speed limit is 30 MPH or less. The roadway width is 20 feet or more. The distance between stop signs and curves must be greater than 600 feet. The roadway must be classified as a local street and not functioning as a through road. *-unless approved by the City Engineer 1 | P a g e Once the initial review has been completed, the City will notify the resident who submitted the Form of the eligibility of the street for further consideration and evaluation. Step 3: Data Collection and Analysis The Engineering Department will perform any necessary data collection and analysis to assess and quantify the traffic and safety conditions in the neighborhood. The Engineering staff will identify the tentative study area, collect preliminary information from their files and other potentially affected agencies, and complete any needed traffic analysis. The following guidelines will be used in evaluating the magnitude of traffic and safety problems, potential for improvement using traffic calming techniques, and establishment of priorities for project implementation. Draft • Vehicular Volume o Potential traffic calming sites should have a minimum of 150 vehicles per day and a maximum of 2,000 vehicles per day. Sites with volumes outside of this range may be considered at the discretion of the City Engineer. • Speed o Only sites with 85th percentile speeds that exceed the posted speed limit by 5 MPH or more will be considered for traffic calming measures. • Functional Classification o Traffic calming measures should only be considered for local routes. • Crashes o Crash data should be examined for a 3-year period. Crash history is considered significant when there are 3 or more auto-involved reported crashes across any 1-year period. If a site has 1 crash that involved a pedestrian or bicycle, then that should also be considered significant. • Cut Through Traffic o A vehicle that detours through a neighborhood for the convenience of decreasing the amount of time it takes to reach a destination is known as cut through traffic. The volume of cut through traffic is typically quantified by estimating the expected traffic generated by a neighborhood based on the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Trip Generation Land Use 210-Single Family Housing. The expected daily volume is divided by the actual daily traffic volume to calculate the percent of cut through traffic. The maximum acceptable percentage of cut through traffic is 25% for local roads and 50% for collector routes. 2 | P a g e • Street Grades and Alignment o Traffic calming measures that cause vertical deflections (speed humps, speed tables, etc.) are not typically installed on streets with grades exceeding 8%, or where a combination of vertical and horizontal alignment would result in inadequate stopping sight distance for motorists encountering traffic calming measures. • Transit, School, and Emergency Routes Draft o Traffic calming measures are not typically installed on streets serving as designated transit routes or primary emergency access routes. o School authorities should be consulted in conjunction with proposed traffic calming measure implementation if a school route is being considered for improvement. • Grading System o A combination of traffic volume and 85th Percentile Speed of traffic will be used in the evaluation by using the Grading System shown below. ▪Points acquired from the Daily Traffic Volumes will be added to the points acquired from the 85th Percentile Speeds. A total of 6 points will be required to move on to the next step. ▪Streets that do not have sidewalks on at least one side are given 1 additional point beyond that which is calculated from the Grading System Criteria table. ▪Locations within ½ mile of a school are given 1 additional point beyond that which is calculated from the Grading System Criteria table. ▪Locations with significant pedestrian activity are also given 1 additional point beyond that which is calculated from the Grading System Criteria table. ▪Note: Historical crash data will also be analyzed in conjunction with traffic calming evaluation, but crashes alone do not confirm the need for traffic calming improvements. 0 - 150 Not Eligible 0 - 4 MPH Not Eligible* 151 - 300 1 5 MPH 1 301 - 500 2 6 MPH 2 501 - 700 3 7 MPH 3 701 - 1,000 4 8 MPH 4 1,001 - 2,000 5 9 MPH 5 2,001+ Not Eligible* 10+ MPH 6 Daily Traffic Volumes 85th Percentile Speeds (over speed limit) Grading System Criteria * - unless approved by City Engineer 3 | P a g e Draft • Improvement Tiers o In addition to the grading system, a tiered approach will also be utilized in selecting improvement measures. As the point total obtained from the Grading System Criteria increases, a greater number of traffic calming measure options will become available. ▪For example, if the Grading System Criteria process yields 8 points, all traffic calming measure options shown under the 6- point, 7-point, and 8-point lists will be available for consideration. • 6 Points • 8 – 9 Points o Speed Hump o Chicane o Speed Table o Traffic Circle o Raised Crosswalk o Raised Intersection o On-Street Parking o Realigned Intersection o Road Diet (striping) o Road Diet (non-striping) o Speed Feedback • 10 Points Signs o Roundabout • 7 Points o Mini-Roundabout o Bulb-Outs/Curb Extensions o Choker o Median Island Step 4: Evaluation and Determination Utilizing the information gathered from analysis and speed studies, the City Engineer will determine the type of device to be installed. Common device categories include those offering vertical deflection, horizontal deflection, and street width reduction. Additional information regarding the listed traffic calming devices can be found in the Institute of Transportation Engineers’ (ITE) Traffic Calming resources or the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Traffic Calming ePrimer. The following are traffic calming measures that could be considered for a potential site: 4 | P a g e Vertical Deflection Draft Speed Hump • Rounded (vertically along travel path) raised areas of pavement typically 12 to 14 feet in length • Often placed in a series (typically spaced 260 to 500 feet apart) • Appropriate for mid-block placement, not at intersections Source: FHWA Traffic Calming ePrimer Speed Table/Raised Crosswalk • Long, raised speed humps with a flat section in the middle and ramps on the ends • Appropriate for mid-block or at intersections, with/without crosswalks • If placed at a pedestrian crossing, it is referred to as a raised crosswalk Source: ITE.org Raised Intersection • Flat raised areas covering entire intersections, with ramps on all approaches and often with brick or other textured materials on the flat section and ramps • Typically installed at signalized or all-way stop controlled intersections with high pedestrian crossing demand Source: FHWA Traffic Calming ePrimer 5 | P a g e Horizontal Deflection Draft Source: FHWA Traffic Calming ePrimer Chicane • A series of alternating curves or lane shifts that force a motorist to steer back and forth instead of traveling a straight path • Appropriate for mid-block locations Source: ITE.org Traffic Circle • Raised islands placed in unsignalized intersections around which traffic circulates • Approaching motorists yield to motorists already in the intersection • Approaches not designed to modern roundabout principals -no deflection Source: ITE.org Mini-Roundabout • Raised islands, placed in unsignalized intersections, around which traffic circulates • Motorists yield to motorists already in the intersection • Center island of mini roundabout is fully traversable, splitter islands may be fully traversable Source: ITE.org Roundabout • Raised islands placed in unsignalized intersections around which traffic circulates • Different from traffic circles or mini roundabouts; possible substitute for traffic signal control Source: ITE.org Realigned Intersection • Reconfiguration of an intersection with perpendicular angles to have skewed approaches or travel paths through the intersection • Most applicable at T-intersections 6 | P a g e Street Width Reduction Draft Source: ITE.org Bulb-Out/Corner Extension • Horizontal extension of the sidewalk into the street, resulting in a narrower roadway section • When combined with on-street parking, a corner extension can create protected parking bays • Effective method for narrowing pedestrian crossing distances and increase pedestrian visibility Source: FHWA Traffic Calming ePrimer Choker • Curb extension is a lateral horizontal extension of the sidewalk into the street, resulting in a narrower roadway section • Encourages lower travel speeds by reducing motorist margin of error • May be suitable for a mid-block crosswalk Source: ITE.org Median Island • Raised island located along the street centerline that narrows the travel lanes at that location • Can often double as a pedestrian/bicycle refuge islands if a cut in the island is provided along a marked crosswalk, bike facility, or shared-use trail crossing On-Street Parking • Allocation of paved space to parking • Can apply on one or both sides of roadway • Can be combined with other traffic calming measures • Can apply alternating sides of street for chicane effect Source: FHWA Traffic Calming ePrimer Source: ITE.org Road Diet • Revision of lane use or widths to result in one travel lane per direction, with goal of reducing cross-section • Common applications include installation of two-way left-turn lanes or bike lanes 7 | P a g e Miscellaneous Draft Speed Feedback Sign • Dynamic signs intended to reduce vehicle speeds by making drivers aware of their speed relative to the posted speed limit • May be permanent or temporary installations Source: FHWA Step 5: Petition If physical traffic calming measures are warranted, a neighborhood petition from the “affected area” is required, and the City Engineer will notify the representative of this additional requirement. The “affected area” is defined as those properties along streets expected to receive traffic calming measures, those streets whose access is substantially dependent upon the streets to be calmed, and any streets expected to receive significant increase in traffic volume or type as a result of the traffic calming measures installation. The City Engineer shall be responsible for final approval of the “affected area” to be petitioned. When a proposed technique is approved, the City Engineer will prepare a petition package to be circulated by the Applicant. The petition will include the name and address of each of the property owners in the affected area as well as the description and detail of the proposed technique. The Applicant can pick up the petition package or arrange to have it mailed. It is the responsibility of the representative to circulate the petition within the affected area. The petition must be delivered (in a legally accepted manner) or offered to all property owners in the affected area. A positive response must be obtained by sixty-six (66%) percent or more of the total number of properties in the affected area to proceed further with the traffic calming project design and implementation. The petition must be returned to the City Engineer within three (3) months of receipt of the petition package by Applicant. At the request of the representative, the City will circulate the petition in the form of mail-out postcards. A positive response of sixty-six (66%) percent or more must still be achieved. Those properties that do not submit a response after three (3) attempts by the City will be counted as a negative response. 8 | P a g e Step 6: Project Design and Implementation Once the completed petition reflecting a positive response has been returned, the City Engineer will make the final recommendation to the City Council Street Committee. The City Council Street Committee will place the item on the agenda for consideration by the City Council. If approved by the City Council, the project will be scheduled for construction by the Engineering Department. Draft The installation cost of calming techniques may be shared with the City and the neighborhood requesting the technique. If the City’s standard materials are used, there will be no cost to the neighborhood. If decorative or non-standard measures are desired, the neighborhood will incur the additional cost for the specialty items. Attachments to be included: Appendix A: Traffic Calming Procedure Flow Chart Appendix B: Traffic Calming Request From Appendix C: Traffic Calming Petition Form 9 | P a g e Appendix A Flow Chart for Neighborhood Traffic Calming Policy Procedures Draft Step 1 Community Support Step 2 Initial Review Meets Minimum Criteria Fails to Meet Minimum Criteria Project Not Eligible for Traffic Calming Education & Enforcement Does Not Meet Specific Study Criteria Meets Specific Study Criteria Step 3 Data Collection & Analysis Step 4 Evalua ion & Determination Step 5 Petition Petition Fails Petition Passes Education & Enforcement Step 6 Project Design & Implementation