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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-392AUGUST 23, 2011 11 -392 ORDINANCE FIRST READING (CARRIED LOST LAID OVER WITHDRAWN PURPOSE: DESIGNATION OF ROUNDABOUTS ON 9TH AVENUE AND BICYCLE LANE ON HIGH AVENUE, AND APPROVAL OF PARKING REGULATION CHANGES ON MARION ROAD, PARKWAY AVENUE, PIONEER DRIVE AND 14TH AVENUE INITIATED BY: TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT A GENERAL ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF OSHKOSH AMENDING SECTIONS 27- 23(A-7), 27- 23(A -7.1), 27 -23(A -10.1) AND 27- 23(A -11) OF THE OSHKOSH MUNICIPAL CODE PERTAINING TO DESIGNATED TRAFFIC SIGNAL CONTROLLED INTERSECTIONS, ROUNDABOUT INTERSECTIONS, DESIGNATED BICYCLE LANES, AND PARKING REGULATIONS ON DESIGNATED STREETS AND ALLEYS. The Common Council of the City of Oshkosh do ordain as follows: SECTION 1. That Section 27- 23(A -7) of the Oshkosh Municipal Code pertaining to designation of traffic signal controlled intersections is hereby amended as follows: A -7 TRAFFIC SIGNAL CONTROLLED INTERSECTIONS DESIGNATED Remove Therefrom Highway 41 and 9 th Avenue ramps Remove Therefrom Koeller Road and West 9 th Avenue Remove Therefrom West 9 th Avenue and Washburn Street SECTION 2. That Section 27- 23(A -7.1) of the Oshkosh Municipal Code pertaining to designation of roundabouts is hereby amended as follows: A -7.1 ROUNDABOUT INTERSECTIONS DESIGNATED Add Thereto Highway 41 and 9 th Avenue Ramps Add Thereto Koeller Street and 9th Avenue Add Thereto Washburn Street and 9th Avenue AUGUST 23, 2011 11 -392 ORDINANCE FIRST READING CONT'D SECTION 3. That Section 27 -23(A -10.1) of the Oshkosh Municipal Code pertaining to designation of bicycle lanes is hereby repealed and recreated as follows: A -10.1 BICYCLE LANES DESIGNATED The following designated bicycle lanes shall be in effect year- round. Algoma Boulevard, southerly side, from Wisconsin Street to Woodland Avenue High Avenue, southerly side, from Congress Avenue to Jackson Street SECTION 4. That Section 27- 23(A -11) of the Oshkosh Municipal Code pertaining to parking regulations on designated streets and alleys is hereby amended as follows: A -11 PARKING REGULATIONS ON DESIGNATED STREETS AND ALLEYS MARION ROAD Remove Therefrom No parking, west side, from Pearl Avenue to Jackson Street. Add Thereto No parking, west sides, from Pearl Avenue to 1,550 feet west of Jackson Street. Add Thereto No parking, south side, from Jackson Street to 565 feet west of Jackson Street. Add Thereto 4 -hour parking, south side, from 565 feet west of Jackson Street to 1,550 feet west of Jackson Street. PARKWAY AVENUE Remove Therefrom No parking, north side, from Broad Street to its easterly terminus except that parking be permitted on the north side of Parkway Avenue between Bowen Street and Grove Street on Sundays between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Remove Therefrom No parking, south side, from 60 feet west of Bowen Street to 130 feet east of Bowen Street. AUGUST 23, 2011 11 -392 ORDINANCE FIRST READING CONT'D Add Thereto Add Thereto Add Thereto PIONEER DRIVE No parking, north side, from Broad Street to Bowen Street. No parking, north side, from Grove Street to its easterly terminus. No parking, south side, from 60 feet west of Bowen Street to 80 feet east of Bowen Street. Remove Therefrom No parking, both sides, from 14 Avenue to 60 feet north. Add Thereto No parking, both sides, from 14 Avenue to 30 feet north of 14 Avenue. 14TH AVENUE Add Thereto No parking, both sides, from the CN railroad tracks to Pioneer Drive. SECTION 5. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage, publication and placement of the appropriate signage. SECTION 6. Publication Notice. Please take notice that the City of Oshkosh enacted ordinance #11 -XXX (A GENERAL ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF OSHKOSH AMENDING SECTIONS 27- 23(A -7), 27- 23(A -7.1), 27 -23(A -10.1) AND 27- 23(A -11) OF THE OSHKOSH MUNICIPAL CODE PERTAINING TO DESIGNATED TRAFFIC SIGNAL CONTROLLED INTERSECTIONS, ROUNDABOUT INTERSECTIONS, DESIGNATED BICYCLE LANES, AND PARKING REGULATIONS ON DESIGNATED STREETS AND ALLEYS) on September 13, 2011. The ordinance designates roundabouts on 9th Avenue, a bicycle lane on High Avenue, and changes on- street parking regulations on Marion Road, Parkway Avenue, Pioneer Drive and 14 Avenue. The full text of the ordinance may be obtained at the Office of the City Clerk, 215 Church Avenue and through the City's website at www.ci.oshkosh.wi.us Clerk's phone: 920/236 -5011. 0 O.fHK OH ON THE WATER MEMORANDUM TO: Mark A. Rohloff, City Manager FROM: Christopher Strong, Transportation Director DATE: August 17, 2011 RE: Explanation of Traffic Regulations Ordinance Changes SECTION 1: SECTION 27- 23(A -7) — TRAFFIC SIGNAL CONTROLLED INTERSECTIONS These changes are due to the construction of the roundabouts. SECTION 2: SECTION 27- 23(A -7.1) —ROUNDABOUT INTERSECTIONS DESIGNATED These changes are due to the construction of the roundabouts. SECTION 3: SECTION 27 -23(A -10.1) — BICYCLE LANES DESIGNATED REQUEST FOR A BICYCLE LANE ON THE SOUTHWESTERLY SIDE OF HIGH AVENUE BETWEEN CONGRESS AVENUE AND JACKSON STREET. (CURRENT CONDITION: BICYCLE LANE ON NORTHERN SIDE OF ROAD, FROM WISCONSIN STREET TO ROCKWELL AVENUE, FROM MARCH 1 TO NOVEMBER 30.) This is a Transportation Department request. This request is analyzed in four parts because of different characteristics in each section. a) High Avenue between Congress Avenue and Wisconsin Street High Avenue between Congress Avenue and Wisconsin Street is being rehabilitated with a mill and overlay project as a part of the 2011 Capital Improvement Program. Since this street has been identified in the draft bicycle /pedestrian plan as a candidate for a bicycle route, it made sense to analyze whether this would be an appropriate time to create the bicycle lane. The roadway has sufficient capacity within the existing pavement width to accommodate a standard bike lane. The pavement width for this section of High Avenue is a minimum of 36 feet, and the road is currently striped for two lanes. Since a travel lane normally requires 10 to 12 feet, Page 2 of 6 Explanation of Traffic Ordinance Changes this means that between 12 and 16 feet are available for parking and/or bicycle lanes. Parking is currently prohibited on the northeastern side of High Avenue for the entire length of this segment, while it is allowed on portions of the southwestern side of High Avenue. The draft bicycle /pedestrian plan indicates that 12 feet is an acceptable minimum for a shared parking/bicycle lane. The two driving lanes are adequate to serve current traffic volumes. There are no intersection capacity issues between Congress Avenue and Wisconsin Street where it would be necessary to add a left or right turn lane. Therefore, there should be no difficulty in designating a dedicated bicycle lane on this section of roadway. b) High Avenue at Wisconsin Street Intersections are where congestion problems typically occur. Therefore, it is important to specifically consider whether a dedicated bicycle lane can continue through an intersection, especially when the intersection has enough traffic volume to warrant a signal. In some cases, it makes sense to discontinue the bicycle lane and have bicycles either merge with motor vehicular traffic or enter the sidewalk. In other cases, it may be possible to continue the bicycle lane through the intersection without adversely affecting vehicular delay. Currently, High Avenue approaching Wisconsin Street has a four lane, 44 -foot wide cross - section, with one dedicated left turn lane, two through lanes and a dedicated right turn lane. The turn lanes are added just prior to the intersection. An alternative configuration may be possible here, where the four lanes are reduced to three: a shared left - through lane, a through lane, and a dedicated right turn lane. Between the through lane and the right turn lane would be a dedicated bicycle lane. This alternative is shown in Figure 1. ---------------- Existing ----- -- - - - - -- Proposed Figure 1: Lane Configuration for High Avenue Approaching Wisconsin Street The traffic signal was last timed in 2005. Using turning movement data collected at that time (2004), I analyzed the effects of the alternative lane conversion on delay. These are summarized in Table 1. As can be seen, there is no significant difference in delay at this intersection by changing the lane configuration. (There were differences, but these were obscured by rounding.) Page 3 of 6 Explanation of Traffic Ordinance Changes Table 1: Estimated Average Delay (in seconds) and Level of Service (LOS) at the Intersection of High Avenue and Wisconsin Street (PM Peak Period, 2004 Data) While the traffic counts are dated, the general results would only change if there was a significant change in how the traffic on High Avenue was split between turning and through movements. I doubt that any such changes have occurred which would significantly change these results. This lane configuration change appears to have negligible, if any, effect on congestion and delay at the intersection. Therefore, there should be no difficulty in designating a dedicated bicycle lane at this intersection approach. c) High Avenue between Wisconsin Street and Jackson Street High Avenue between Wisconsin Street and Jackson Street starts with a 38 -foot wide section, widening out to a 42 -foot wide section at its intersection with Jackson Street. Parking is prohibited on the northern side of the roadway, similar to High Avenue west of Wisconsin Street. The roadway has sufficient capacity within the existing pavement width to accommodate a standard bike lane. At the western end of the section, it is easy to convert the 38 -foot section from two 19 -foot "lanes" to two 12 -foot lanes and a 14 -foot shared bicycle /parking lane. The two driving lanes are adequate to serve current traffic volumes. There are no intersection capacity issues between Wisconsin Street and Jackson Street where it would be necessary to add a left or right turn lane. Therefore, there should be no difficulty in designating a dedicated bicycle lane on this section of roadway. d) High Avenue at Jackson Street At Jackson Street, High Avenue widens to a four lane approach, with a dedicated left turn lane, two through lanes, and a dedicated right turn lane. Because parking is permitted on both sides of High Avenue east of Jackson Street, it is unclear how easily a bicycle lane can be accommodated at that location. Therefore, the current recommendation is to terminate the dedicated bicycle lane where the bays for the dedicated turn lanes start. Summary It appears to be very feasible from an engineering perspective to accommodate a dedicated bicycle lane between Congress Avenue and Jackson Street. The pavement marking scheme should be relatively simple to implement, although it is uncertain whether sufficient funding is available in 2011 to accomplish this. Eastbound I Northbound Southbound Total Delay LOS Delay LOS De la LOS Delay LOS Existin 15 B 5 A 7 A 8 A ro P osed 15 B 5 A 7 A 8 A While the traffic counts are dated, the general results would only change if there was a significant change in how the traffic on High Avenue was split between turning and through movements. I doubt that any such changes have occurred which would significantly change these results. This lane configuration change appears to have negligible, if any, effect on congestion and delay at the intersection. Therefore, there should be no difficulty in designating a dedicated bicycle lane at this intersection approach. c) High Avenue between Wisconsin Street and Jackson Street High Avenue between Wisconsin Street and Jackson Street starts with a 38 -foot wide section, widening out to a 42 -foot wide section at its intersection with Jackson Street. Parking is prohibited on the northern side of the roadway, similar to High Avenue west of Wisconsin Street. The roadway has sufficient capacity within the existing pavement width to accommodate a standard bike lane. At the western end of the section, it is easy to convert the 38 -foot section from two 19 -foot "lanes" to two 12 -foot lanes and a 14 -foot shared bicycle /parking lane. The two driving lanes are adequate to serve current traffic volumes. There are no intersection capacity issues between Wisconsin Street and Jackson Street where it would be necessary to add a left or right turn lane. Therefore, there should be no difficulty in designating a dedicated bicycle lane on this section of roadway. d) High Avenue at Jackson Street At Jackson Street, High Avenue widens to a four lane approach, with a dedicated left turn lane, two through lanes, and a dedicated right turn lane. Because parking is permitted on both sides of High Avenue east of Jackson Street, it is unclear how easily a bicycle lane can be accommodated at that location. Therefore, the current recommendation is to terminate the dedicated bicycle lane where the bays for the dedicated turn lanes start. Summary It appears to be very feasible from an engineering perspective to accommodate a dedicated bicycle lane between Congress Avenue and Jackson Street. The pavement marking scheme should be relatively simple to implement, although it is uncertain whether sufficient funding is available in 2011 to accomplish this. Page 4 of 6 Explanation of Traffic Ordinance Changes The bicycle lane is recommended for year -round use, since that is consistent with bicycling activity in the City. Locating the lane on the right side of the road is consistent with current design standards. One intent of the draft bicycle /pedestrian plan is to improve pedestrian/bicycle facilities when opportunities present themselves. Since High Avenue has adequate capacity to serve vehicular traffic and can support a bicycle lane without reducing vehicular or parking capacity, this seems like a good opportunity. Over time, similar opportunities can be used to build a more contiguous network of routes, as identified in the plan. The plan is scheduled for consideration (and potential adoption) by the Common Council in the fall. However, there does not seem to be any downside to designating this bicycle lane in advance of Council consideration. PASSED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (7 -0) SECTION 4: SECTION 27- 230 -11) PARKING REGULATIONS REQUEST FOR 4 -HOUR PARKING ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF MARION ROAD FROM 565 FEET WEST OF JACKSON STREET TO 1,550 FEET WEST OF JACKSON STREET. (CURRENT CONDITION: NO PARKING.) This is a Department of Community Development request. Marion Road was constructed in 2001 as a 36 -foot wide street to accommodate redevelopment. By City standards, this street width is sufficient to allow on- street parking in both directions. At that time, staff recommended prohibiting parking on Marion Road, as future redevelopment site plans were expected to accommodate parking needs with off - street parking. In addition, there was concern that future traffic volumes could require removal of on- street parking, which can be difficult to accomplish. The construction of the river walk in this area is a case where parking needs have not been accommodated with off - street parking. The request would permit on- street parking to help meet these needs. The 4 -hour time restriction and allowing parking on only one side of the road should help to limit on- street parking, which is still important from a safety perspective. However, this parking will make the river walk easier to access for those who wish to start their trip by private vehicle. PASSED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (7 -0) A REQUEST FOR UNRESTRICTED PARKING ON THE NORTH SIDE OF PARKWAY AVENUE FROM BOWEN STREET TO GROVE STREET. (CURRENT CONDITION: NO PARKING EXCEPT ON SUNDAYS BETWEEN THE HOURS OF 9:00 A.M. AND 1:00 P.M.) AND Page 5 of 6 Explanation of Traffic Ordinance Changes A REQUEST FOR UNRESTRICTED PARKING ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF PARKWAY AVENUE FROM 80 FEET EAST OF BOWEN STREET TO 130 FEET EAST OF BOWEN STREET. (CURRENT CONDITION: NO PARKING.) These are citizen requests. The citizen making these requests wants the ability to obtain an overnight parking permit for a property between Bowen Street and Grove Street. However, overnight parking permits are available only when parking is available on both sides of the street. At this property's location, parking is prohibited on both sides of the street. City guidelines on local street parking were discussed under earlier agenda items. In this case, the street width is 30 feet, so parking restrictions may be appropriate based on a more detailed review of local conditions. A field review did not indicate a high demand for on- street parking during the day. Based on 2006 data, traffic volumes are likely over 1,000 vehicles per day. Demand for on- street parking was higher in the past, when Mercy Medical Center operated in the neighborhood. Parking was relaxed on the south side of the street in July 2000, when Mercy relocated to the west side. There are no unusual sight distance issues on this street. In short, there does not seem to be a compelling safety reason to continue to prohibit this parking. The parking restriction on the south side of the street was instituted in December 1998, in order to relieve congestion at the intersection. Since that time, the street has been widened from 28 feet to 30 feet, and Mercy relocated to the west side. I am not aware of any current congestion concerns at this intersection, and therefore recommend reducing the no parking area on the south side of the street to accommodate the citizen's request. PASSED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (7 -0) A REQUEST FOR UNRESTRICTED PARKING ON BOTH SIDES OF PIONEER DRIVE FROM 30 FEET NORTH OF 14 AVENUE TO 60 FEET NORTH OF 14 AVENUE. (CURRENT CONDITION: NO PARKING.) This is a Transportation Department request. The previous request would tend to reduce on- street parking availability in this area. In field - reviewing the intersection, I believe that the existing parking restriction on Pioneer Drive can be shortened a bit. This would help to offset some of the parking lost with the previous request. The street width here is approximately 36 feet, which is normally adequate to support on- street parking on both sides of the street. According to our traffic management guidelines, however, significant curves are a valid reason to consider removal of on- street parking, even if other factors suggest that the parking is permissible. The curve was cited in 1996 as a reason for instituting the parking restriction, and that reason persists today. I believe that a 30 foot restriction, instead of the current 60 foot restriction, would be sufficient to ensure adequate clearance at the intersection, and could help to preserve on- street parking availability. PASSED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (7 -0) Page 6 of 6 Explanation of Traffic Ordinance Changes A REQUEST FOR NO PARKING ON BOTH SIDES OF 14 AVENUE FROM PIONEER DRIVE TO THE CANADIAN NORTHERN RAILROAD TRACKS. (CURRENT CONDITION: UNRESTRICTED PARKING.) This is a police department request. At this location, 14 Avenue terminates at a curve where it becomes Pioneer Drive. The parking ordinance on Pioneer Drive was last updated in 1996. At that time, employees at the former Coca -Cola building on 14 Avenue were parking on- street near adjacent private property to the west. Through a couple of ordinance changes, short-term parking was instituted on 14 Avenue to discourage on- street employee parking near residences, and parking was prohibited on a section of Pioneer Drive north of its intersection with 14 Avenue. Combined, these changes were intended to accommodate employee parking by shifting them onto Pioneer Drive, far enough from the intersection so that they would not interfere with the curve of the road. Currently, there do not seem to be issues with employee parking in this area. Instead, the main concern is with demand for recreational/boat parking, preserving visibility of the railroad grade crossing, and promoting enforceability of the existing parking ordinance. The police department expressed concern that permitting parking on 10 Avenue does not work well with prohibiting parking on the adjacent section of Pioneer Avenue, since it may not be too clear where one street starts and the other one ends. This request would prohibit parking on the short section ( -70 feet long) of 14 Avenue between the railroad tracks and the end of the street. By state statute, vehicles cannot park within 25 feet of the nearest rail at a railroad grade crossing, so this prohibition would eliminate at most three spaces on either side of the road. These spaces are in close proximity to the curve. Although the street widths here are adequate to support on- street parking, the angle of the curve suggests that a parking prohibition may be appropriate, especially when considering vehicles that may be towing boats. The former Coca -Cola building is now owned and occupied by the Oshkosh Area School District. The school district indicated that they do not rely on on- street parking east of the railroad tracks, so this request should not affect their operations. PASSED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (7 -0) MEMORANDUM ON THE WATER TO: Mark A. Rohloff, City Manager FROM: Christopher Strong, Transportation Director DATE: August 17, 2011 RE: Items Defeated by the Traffic Review Board at their August 9, 2011 Meeting A REQUEST FOR STOP SIGNS ON ABBEY AVENUE AT ITS INTERSECTION WITH GREENFIELD TRAIL. (CURRENT CONDITION: YIELD SIGNS ON ABBEY AVENUE.) This is a citizen request. The citizen making this request has observed multiple vehicles on Abbey Avenue, from both directions and at different times of day, failing to observe the yield sign at Greenfield Trail. He expressed concern that the failure to yield could result in some significant accidents. He wanted to see the traffic control converted from yield signs to stop signs to heighten motorist response. Based on Department of Transportation guidelines, if an intersection satisfies one or more or more of the following criteria, stop sign control may be appropriate: • Three or more right angle accidents in a twelve -month period, or five or more right angle accidents in a 2 -year period. 0 3,000 or more vehicles per day entering the intersection. 0 A severe sight distance problem. There have been no reported crashes at this intersection since 2007. Traffic counts, collected in June, showed an average of 1,030 vehicles per weekday entering the intersection (355 vehicles on Abbey Avenue, 675 vehicles on Greenfield Trail). I suspect that the traffic volumes on Greenfield Trail may have been a little higher than "normal ", due to some drivers potentially using Greenfield Trail as a cut - through street to avoid construction at Washburn Street and 9` Avenue. A field investigation showed that sight distances here were adequate, and that existing signage was visible. In summary, none of the warrants are satisfied at this location. The issue at this intersection appears to be with motorist failure to comply with existing signs, rather than having insufficient traffic control. If vehicles on Abbey Avenue routinely do not experience cross - traffic on Greenfield Trail, which is likely true based on current traffic volumes, they may tend to ignore the stop signs over time just as some currently ignore the yield signs. Posting a stop sign when not warranted may reduce driver compliance with stop signs elsewhere in the City, where the signs are justified due to traffic volumes, crash history, and /or sight distance limitations. This request was considered by the Board in December 2007, with the Board denying the request. DEFEATED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (0 -7). A REQUEST FOR STOP SIGNS ON 12 AVENUE AT ITS INTERSECTION WITH RUGBY STREET. (CURRENT CONDITION: YIELD SIGNS ON 12 AVENUE.) ITEMS DEFEATED 2 AUGUST 2011 This is a citizen request. The citizen making this request has observed multiple vehicles on 12` Avenue which fail to obey the yield signs. A rollover accident occurred last year, and the citizen expressed concern that the failure to yield could result in additional accidents in the future. He wanted to see the traffic control converted to stop signs to heighten motorist response. Based on Department of Transportation guidelines, if an intersection satisfies one or more or more of the following criteria, stop sign control may be appropriate: • Three or more right angle accidents in a twelve -month period, or five or more right angle accidents in a 2 -year period. • 3,000 or more vehicles per day entering the intersection. • A severe sight distance problem. A review of crash records found one crash at this intersection in 2010, when a westbound vehicle failed to yield to traffic on Rugby Street. (This is the one referred to by the citizen.) No other reportable crashes occurred at this intersection from 2007 -2010. Traffic volume data were collected in May and June of this year. The average weekday traffic volume entering this intersection is 500 vehicles per day (320 vehicles on 12 Avenue, 180 vehicles on Rugby Street). The existing yield signs are readily visible from both approaches on 12 Avenue, and there are no major sight distance issues at this intersection. As the intersection does not satisfy the warrants, I recommend denial of this request. As a side note, a yield sign is normally placed on the lower volume street at an intersection. In this case, since 12` Avenue carries nearly twice as much traffic as Rugby Street, the yield signs would normally be placed on Rugby Street. Staff research found that these yield signs were installed in 1980 as a way to discourage from speeding out of South Park. The citizen making this request cited the same concern as motivating his request. Reversing the signs would likely not help this problem, and is not warranted on the basis of intersection delay or safety. DEFEATED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (0 -7). A REQUEST FOR YIELD SIGNS AT THE INTERSECTION OF MOCKINGBIRD WAY AT ITS INTERSECTION WITH WELLINGTON DRIVE. (CURRENT CONDITION: UNCONTROLLED INTERSECTION.) This is a citizen request. This intersection is in a relatively new subdivision, where traffic volumes are expected to increase as people start to move in. The citizen making this request thought that traffic volumes might be high enough to warrant traffic control at this intersection. As the least intrusive traffic control device is a yield sign, the warrants for yield signs were examined at this intersection. The warrants for a yield sign are as follows: 0 Three or more right angle accidents in a 24 -month period, or five or more right angle accidents in a 36 -month period. • 1,500 or more vehicles per day. • Inadequate sight distance. Traffic counts conducted in June 2011 showed that about 700 vehicles per day enter the intersection (500 ITEMS DEFEATED 3 AUGUST 2011 on Mockingbird Way, 200 on Wellington Drive). This is an increase of 100 vehicles per day from 2008; however, it is still below the threshold where a yield sign would be appropriate. There has been only one accident at this intersection from 2008 to 2010, which appears to have been due to a distracted driver as opposed to an absence of a traffic control device. Sight distance at this intersection is good. As development continues in the western part of the City, it will be worth examining this intersection in the future. However, it is premature to install yield signs here, as none of the yield sign warrants are satisfied at this time. DEFEATED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (0 -7). A REQUEST FOR NO PARKING ON THE WEST SIDE OF BELLFIELD DRIVE FROM CUTTER COURT TO SOUTH POND COURT. (CURRENT CONDITION: UNRESTRICTED PARKING.) This is a citizen request. The citizen making this request noted that a larger vehicle regularly parks on the west side of Bellfield Drive, on the inside of a curve in the roadway. The citizen said that this vehicle's parking position reduces sight distance around the curve, especially when compounded by the road's elevation change, and therefore created a potential safety challenge. The following guidelines are used when evaluating parking restrictions on local streets: Street Width Less than 17 feet 17 to 24 feet 25 to 33 feet 34 feet and over None Parking Restrictions Both Sides (All cases) One Side (All cases) Valid Petition If a street is between 25 to 33 feet in width, the guidelines note that a valid petition, signed by over 50 percent of the residents on a local street, should be the overriding factor in determining a parking restriction. In the absence of a petition, the following factors would support the removal of on- street parking on local streets between 25 feet and 33 feet. • Traffic exceeds 1,000 vehicles per day. Higher traffic volumes present more opportunities for vehicles to conflict, which increases the potential safety risk. • On- street parking exceeds 50% of available spaces. Higher parking utilization will tend to narrow the effective width of the street. • Significant curves, hills or sight restrictions. If present, these factors would support the removal of on- street parking. These factors are all to be considered when parking restrictions are being considered for streets less than 34 feet in width. Bellfield Drive, according to field measurements, is 36 feet in width. While there is a significant curve on this section of road, weekday traffic volumes are around 350 vehicles per day. During my field visit, little on- street parking was being used. The particular vehicle was not parked at that time, so I was unable to see how the vehicle might affect sight distance. Further, a review of crash records did not indicate any reportable crashes on Bellfield Drive from 2002 through 2010. The Board normally relies heavily on neighborhood input when considering local parking restrictions. In this case, I am concerned that restricting parking could result in increased speeds in this area. While 85th ITEMS DEFEATED 4 AUGUST 2011 percentile speeds at this location are acceptable (26 mph in each direction), I have received complaints in the past about speeding in this neighborhood. So even if adjacent properties support the proposed change (which is uncertain), I do not believe the request would lead to a net safety improvement on this local street. DEFEATED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (0 -7) A REQUEST FOR UNRESTRICTED PARKING ON THE WEST SIDE OF BOWEN STREET FROM BAYSHORE DRIVE TO THE FOX RIVER. (CURRENT CONDITION: NO PARKING.) This is a citizen request. This dead -end section of Bowen Street provides access to a public fishing dock, as well as several residences. The citizen making this request was interested in having the ability to park in order to use the dock. Based on a review of previous Traffic Review Advisory Board meetings, parking appears to have been prohibited on both sides of this street for at least 30 years, so it is unclear the exact reason for the restriction. However, the street width here is only 21 -22 feet which, according to City guidelines for parking on local streets, would require prohibition of parking on at least one side of the street. Part of the reason for this guideline is to accommodate emergency vehicle access. Since this street is a dead end, it is more critical to preserve suitable emergency vehicle access through the one access point. There is on- street parking available on Bayshore Drive for people using the dock. While it is a longer walk, I think it is a better option than to permit on- street parking on this part of Bowen Street. DEFEATED BY TRAFFIC REVIEW BOARD (0 -7).