No dispute from residents over installing traffic-calming
The four people who attended the meeting only wanted to know how soon the letters to vote on the matter would go out and how long it would take to get the measures installed.
Town assistant engineer Eric Schindler explained the process and steps to get the speed bumps and the proposed locations for them.
“The traffic-calming policy is pretty straight-forward,” he said. “We received an application for traffic calming.”
The staff then did a speed study, collecting data based on where speeding is being claimed.
“Once we analyze that data, we’ll determine whether or not it meets the thresholds that we have in place,” Schindler said.
If the data shows it meets the thresholds, there is public notification to discuss the speed study’s findings, and the residents of that road will have an opportunity to vote on whether they want the speed bumps.
The traffic-calming bumps are 78- by 80-inches long, he added.
“Ballots will be sent to the property owners in the speed zone sometime in the next month,” he said. “We’ve just started a new fiscal year and were working on getting a lot of projects off the ground right now.”
“If there’s anybody who rents, they wouldn’t be eligible to vote. It’s just for property owners, and it’s one vote per household,” Schindler said.
“As long as there is 50 percent plus one vote in the affirmative, it goes to the next step, the Planning Commission,” Schindler said. That would be followed by a vote by the Board.
Regarding when they can be installed, “I would hope six months to a year,” he said. “It’s got to go through all these steps, be ordered and get on a schedule to get installed. And, installation doesn’t happen overnight.”
However, “we’ll have to get (speed bump ahead) signs up first,” Schindler added.
At a meeting Wednesday evening, Aug. 6, when Schindler discussed traffic calming on Union Road he said, “The meeting went well. It was just to discuss traffic calming on Union Road, between Smith Road and Everett Road; the findings we had from the traffic calming application.
“We did some speed studies and determined there was speeding that warranted additional consideration,” Schindler said. “We’re looking to put two sets of speed cushions on Union Road at two separate locations.
“When you’re coming off Smith Road, right as you round that first turn, there’ll be a set at that general area; and then as you pass the cemetery on the left, for the church, there’s another area over there where we’re looking to put some (speed bumps),” he said. “But it still has to go through the vote process; it has to go to Planning Commission; it has to go to (Board of Mayor and Aldermen) to get approval.
“There are still a lot of steps that have to be met before it actually gets implemented,” Schindler said.
As for the three residents who attended, “they were for it,” he added. “There’s maybe 10 houses on that stretch (of road).
