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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMay 4, 2015 Agenda Packet AGENDA COLUMBIA HEIGHTS TRAFFIC COMMISSION MONDAY, MAY4, 2015;5:30 P.M. I.ROLL CALL II.APPROVAL OF APRIL 6, 2015MINUTES The MMUTCD guidelines for STOP or YIELD signs at intersections are included in your packet. TH III.PUBLIC HEARING TO INSTALL TRAFFIC CONTROL AT THE INTERSECTION OF 7STREET ND AND 42AVENUE At the Traffic Commission meeting on April 6, 2015, Commissioners called for a Public Hearing to thnd consider installation of YIELDor STOPsigns at the intersection of 7Street and 42Avenue, yielding nd or stopping traffic on 42Avenue. The Traffic Commission reviewed the request for YIELD or STOP signs at thisintersectionat the meeting on April 7, 2014.At that time there were two accidents in 2010, one accident in 2013,and three accidents in 2014 (onein January andtwoinFebruary). Commissionersfelt the unusual winter driving conditions in 2014 were a contributing factorto the number of accidentsand the request for YIELD or STOP signs was denied based on the guidelines in the MMUTCD. Mr.Kris Barto submitted a request to City Councilmembers regarding traffic control at thisintersection onMarch4, 2015.The concernwasthe number of accidents.At the City Council meeting on March 9, 2015,Council directedthe Traffic Commission to reconsider traffic control at this intersection. thstthndth On 7Street, traffic yields at 41Avenue and stops at 44Avenue. On 42Avenue, traffic stops at 5 Street and Jefferson Street. The Police Department reviewed the reported accident recordsat this intersectionfor the past five years. These are summarized on the table below. YEARDATEVEHICLE 1VEHICLE 2REMARKS 2010June 4Personal injury. July 30Personal injury. Driver cited. thnd 2013February 5South bound on 7West bound on 42V1-School Bus, V2-Minor injuries. 2014January24Property damage. Driver cited. V2 Cited: Drivingafter revocation, thnd January25North bound on 7East bound on 42 Leaving scene, Failure to yield. V1 Cited: Driving after revocation. thnd February4South bound on 7West bound on 42 V2 Cited: Failure to yield. V1 was stopped at intersection. thnd South bound on 7West bound on 42 February7V3 hit V2 causing V2 to hit V1. th VEHICLE 3: North bound on 7 V3 Cited: Driving after suspension. thnd November 16South bound on 7West bound on 42Entered intersection at same time. thnd 2015March2South bound on 7West bound on 42Entered intersection at same time. thnd March 4South bound on 7West bound on 42No report filed. Traffic Commission Agenda May 4, 2015 Page 2 The Commission requested the Police Department reviewreported accident records at several intersections in the area, both controlled and uncontrolled intersections.The accidents ranged from 0 to 1 at intersections with stop signs, 2 to 3 at intersections with yield signs, and 1 to 9 at uncontrolled intersections (including accidents prior to yield signs being installed). The informationis provided in the attached memo from Captain Austin and displayed on the map. RECOMMENDED MOTION: Move to recommend the City Council install STOP signs at the thndnd intersection of 7Street and 42Avenue, stopping traffic on 42Avenue. IV.OLD BUSINESS None. IV.OTHER OLD BUSINESS V.NEW BUSINESS None. VI.OTHER NEW BUSINESS VII.REPORTS A.CITY ENGINEER th Parking on 49Avenue for the Hylander Center was approved by City Council on a trial basis. June agenda items: rd The Council received a request to change the YIELD signs on Quincy Street at 43 Avenue to two-way or four-way STOP signs. The Police Department is reviewing the parking on the west side of Monroe Street from th 46½ Avenue to 47Avenue, based on the number of complaints received from residents. Police enforce the 6 hour parking regulation on a complaint basis. Officers are spending a disproportional amount of time chalking tires and ticketing vehicles parked on the west th side of Monroe Street between 46½ Avenue and 47Avenue. The majority of vehicles parked on Monroe Street belong to Hilltop residents. B.POLICE CHIEF C.COMMISSIONERS VIII.ADJOURNMENT The City of Columbia Heights does not discriminate on the basis of disability in the admission or access to, or treatment or employment in, its services, programs, or activities. Upon request, accommodation will be provided to allow individuals with disabilities toparticipate in all City of Columbia Heights' services, programs, and activities. Auxiliary aids for handicapped persons are available upon request when the request is made at least 96 hours in advance. Please call the City Council Secretary at 763/706-3611 to make arrangements. (TDD/763-706-3692 for deaf only.) UNAPPROVED OFFICIAL PROCEEDINGS COLUMBIA HEIGHTS TRAFFIC COMMISSION MONDAY,APRIL 6, 2015 CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Chairperson Carlson at 5:32p.m. ROLL CALL Members present:Carlson, Clerkin, Doty, Olson Staff present:Kathy Young, Assistant City Engineer Lenny Austin, PoliceCaptain Sue Schmidtbauer, Public Works Secretary Council Liaison:Donna Schmitt APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion by Doty, second byOlson,to approve the minutes of January 5, 2015as presented.Motion carried unanimously. OLD BUSINESS TH A.REQUEST TO INSTALL TWO-WAY STOP OR YIELD SIGNS AT THE INTERSECTION OF 7 ND STREET AND 42AVENUE Mr. Kris Barto submitted a request to the City Council regarding traffic control at the intersection of thnd 7Street and 42Avenue. The concern is the number of accidents. Another resident has also continued to express concern about the frequency of accidents.At the council meeting on March 9, 2015,the council directed the Traffic Commission to reconsider traffic control at this intersection. The Traffic Commission reviewed a request for yieldor stopsigns at this intersection on April 7, 2014. Although there were three accidents during Januaryand February of 2014, commissioners felt the unusual winter driving conditions in 2014 were a contributing factor. The request was denied. thstthndth On 7Street traffic yields at 41Avenue and stops at 44Avenue. On 42Avenue traffic stops at 5 Street and Jefferson Street. The Police Department reviewed the reported accident records for the past five years. There were two accidents in 2010, one in 2013, four in 2014, and one in 2015. Captain Austin reported there was an accident on March 4,2015 thathedid not previously have a report on;so there were actually two accidents in 2015, one on March 2 and another on March 4. The accident on March 4 had front tire thnd damage; one vehicle was traveling southbound on 7Street and the other westbound on 42Avenue. No other information is available. This accident wassimilar tothe one on March 2where one vehicle thnd was traveling southbound on 7Street and the other westbound on 42Avenue.Young statedthere was also an accident onAugust 20, 2014 that was reported to her by aresident and has no official police report. th Amber Burnette, a resident at 4208 7Street,was present at the meeting. She has lived there five years and feels the accidents that have occurred are more than just fender bendersbecause the vehicles Traffic Commission Minutes –April 6, 2015 Page 2 drive with such speed. A school bus wentup over the curbandthe sidewalk and ended up in a yard. Another vehicle almost knocked the fire hydrant over into someone’s yard; italso went over the curb and sidewalk and ended upin the yard almost knockingdowntheir fence.The four yards at the corners of the intersection have all had vehicles in them due to speed, so it’s not just happening in one direction.Oftenthere’s broken glass in the intersection from accidents thatprobably aren’treported. She’s concerned about people crossing the street andkids on bikesdue to the speed of the vehicles crossing the intersection.John Murzyn was also present at the meeting and lives twoblocksdown ndthnd from 42on7Street. He agrees westbound cars drive fast on 42Avenue. John stated when he worked for the City he had to check the hydrant near the corner house multiple times because of accidents. Doesn’t know why, but for some reason that’s where most of the accidents happen and the cars end up in that yard.He also feels something needs to be donedue tothe number of collisionslast year, especially because hewas almost hit at that intersection. Statescars are mostly going east and th end upon the east side of 7Street. thndnd Dotystated there is a 4-way stop at4on42and a 2-way stop at 5thand 42sobasicallythere is a two block high speed areagoing eastboundwithplenty of visibility;howeverthatstill doesn’t explain th why people drive at such a high speed. Clerkinadded thatafter 5Street it’s a clearshot to Jefferson before there’s a stop sign,so he can see why drivers speed upgoing eastbound. However, he questions if a yield sign for eastbound traffic would slow them down.Schmittstatedshe would prefer stop signs eastto west. Carlsonstated peoplerealize what a yield sign is so you don’t need astop sign. However,it seems like a lot of people don’t know the vehicle to the right hastheright of way. Schmittfeels that even if drivers treatedthe stop signlike ayield sign,itwould be better than what they are doing now. Dotystated that if westopped east and west traffic, they would still have a thstthstnd straight shot going 44all the way up to 41on 7Street. Olson stated 41is almost replicate of 42 as far as eastto west goes. Doty asked if there are statistics on accidents at controlled intersections. StatedWoodbury had seven accidents in one year at a controlled intersection with stop signs,sotheyput in a roundaboutbecause you have to slow down to getaround theroundabout.This eliminated rear-ending and running stop stth signs. Austinagreed that 41and7used to have crashes but that has lessenedsincetheyield signs were installed. There is still congestion but the signs have helped prevent accidents.He cangather some data regardingaccidentsat controlled intersections vs.uncontrolled intersections in this area so the Traffic Commission can compare the two.Youngstated it is staff’srecommendation to use yield signs based on the fact that the accident historyseems to beongoing.The hilland the fence doblock visibility a little going eastbound until you’reup close to the intersection—this may be why eastbound seems to be more of a problem.Carlsonprefers ayield sign.Feels we mayneed to call for a public hearing but would like it left open for ayield or astopsign. Carlson motioned to call for a public hearing atthenext meeting. Motion secondedby Clerkin. Doty abstained, would like to wait to see the data. Olson abstained, feels the city is saturated in signs and is not sure this is the answer. Feels the signs we already have do not provide any safe havensand there is no physical space for roundaboutsand theyalso aremost likely expensive.Doty stated that in northeast Minneapolis theyhave small roundaboutsto slow traffic down around schools and churches. Olsonfeels that even if ayield signisplacedat the intersection, there is noguaranteethat traffic will slow down, he would rather see a stop sign. Carlsonasked for ideas asthe vote failedforapublic hearing. Schmittasked if staffcould come up Traffic Commission Minutes –April 6, 2015 Page 3 with crash accident records forcontrolled intersections bythe next meeting. Captain Austin will get ndththth the records for eightintersections--5th, 6th, 7thand Washingtonon 42Avenue and5, 6, 7and st Washington on 41Avenue.He will go back five years from2010 to the present. Young advised that nd the yield signs on 42 andWashington have been approved but are not installed yet. CaptainAustin will still include thatintersection. Young suggested that we table the requestuntil the next meeting, get the information, and then decide on apublic hearing. Carlson does not want to do this, feelswe shouldn’twait.Olson suggested we use the additional information as supporting the recommended motion this evening, and have the additional information availablethat will be usable with this recommendation. If the information the police givesuswill provide more evidence,then we need to do something about this.Asked ifyou can call for apublic hearing at the next meeting and include thatinformation as well. Youngadvised that you can.Olsonmotioned to call a public hearingto thnd install 2-way yield or stop signs at the intersection of 7Street and42Avenue yielding or stopping nd traffic on42Avenue with the additional information the police will provide for evidencefor the hearing.Second by Clerkin, threeayes, Doty abstained.Motion carried. Amber asked that we send her the information for the next meeting. OTHER OLD BUSINESS None. NEW BUSINESS RD A.REQUEST FOR STOP SIGNS AT THE INTERSECTION OF TYLER STREET AND 43 AVENUE rd Mr. Matt Lilley requested stop signs at the intersection of Tyler Street and 43Avenue. His concern is the lack of traffic control. The Police Department reviewed the reported accident records for the past five years; twoaccidents in 2011, one accident in 2012, and one accident in 2015. stthrd On Tyler Street, traffic stops at 40Avenue and 44Avenue. On 43Avenue, traffic stops at Reservoir Boulevard and Arthur Street. Visibility at the intersection is good. Olson stated this is another example of where we want to respect the residents who want this to occur, but we also have a responsibility to monitor and check some of these. Motion by Olsonto deny the rd request to install stopsigns at the intersection of Tyler Street and 43Avenue.Second by Clerkin. Schmitt advisedthis is her corner and she has been at three of these accidents. In 2011 roads were in good condition but weather caused them to glaze for approximately an hour and cars slid through the intersection due to ice. Once the roads were cleared everything was fine. The accident in 2012 involveda motorcycle and a minivan. The motorcyclisthad a passenger and anticipated thevan coming into the intersection and laid the bike down rather than tryingto avoid the van. The van actually did stop but the motorcyclistdidn’t think it was going to. The motorcyclistdid have injuries. In 2015 an older brother was driving southbound with acarfull of young kids. Schmittdid not see the accident but she heard it. A car from eastto west decided to speed up toget through the intersection before the kids.Instead the car hit them and spun them around. There were injuries. She states the scariest thing is seeing schoolbuses going through that intersection sofast, and hearinga lot of Traffic Commission Minutes –April 6, 2015 Page 4 screeching brakes. They do find car parts at the intersection so there are other accidents that aren’t reported. She also debates theclear view because anytime cars are parked on the street there is not a clear view. Carlson reminded Donna that any decision made by the Traffic Commission can be appealed. rd Motion by Olson to deny the request to install stop signs at the intersection of Tyler Street and 43 Avenue. Carlson requested another roll call for the vote. Vote as follows: Carlson no,Clerkin yea, Doty yea, Olson yea. Motion carried. ND B.REQUEST FOR STOP SIGN AT THE INTERSECTION OF MONROE STREET AND 42 AVENUE nd Mr. Todd Carnis requested stop signs at the intersection of Monroe Street and 42Avenue. His concern is the lack of traffic control. Mr. Carnisspoke with staff at the Police Department and the Engineering Department. The Police Department reviewed the reported accident records for the past five years;one accident in 2010 and two accidents in 2011. ndth Monroe Street is one-way southbound from 42Avenue to 40Avenue. On Monroe Street, traffic thstnd stops at 44Avenue and 41Avenue. On 42Avenue, traffic stops at Quincy Street and Jefferson Street.Visibility at the intersection is good. nd Motion by Olson to deny the request to install stop signs at the intersection of Monroe Street and 42 Avenuebased on the information we have available. Second by Doty.All ayes. Motion carried. OTHER NEW BUSINESS None. REPORTS A.CITY ENGINEER th A request was madeby the City to the school district to modify parkingon 49Avenue by the school. They would likeshort-term parkingbeginningat the striped “no parking”area and extending20’ north of the entrance to the Fitness Center. Currently parking is allowed any time on non-school days. The proposed signage would state parking is available onschool daysbetween 8:30a.m. and 11:30a.m. Olson questioned if it is dangerous to have parking on both sides of the street when there is a parking th lot on the other side of street withclear pedestrian crosswalks. Austin stated 49Avenueis a very busy street and momentum builds upboth east and westbound. Olson feelsthis is a very dangerous area for street parking, especially when you have a large parking lot. Austin asked it there are a lot of requests for this. Young replied most requests are coming from the seniors. Austinasked if there have been traffic studies done for speed on this road, Young repliednot recently. Per Young, we did requireno parking nearthe intersections a year or two ago to improve visibility. It was noted that this currentrequestis not for handicap parking,it is for convenience parking. This doesn’t make sense when there is a parking lot across the street with marked crosswalks. The request came through the Recreation Departmentto the City Manager who has been discussing it with the school district. This Traffic Commission Minutes –April 6, 2015 Page 5 is a county road but the city does have the ability to monitor parking. Olson andDoty feel it would be unsafe. The parking request is for eight cars. Olson feels you should notaddthiskind of danger zone by theschool building when there is a parking lot and marked crosswalks for people to be safe, especially foreight cars. Schmitt asked if thiswas being presented to the Traffic Commission because it will go to the councilnext.Youngthinks we will providethecouncil with our input and then they will decide whether to go ahead with the parking or not. Olson reiterated that this is a dangerous situationand that he would make a motion.He could understand if this wasforhandicapparking, but to allow parking for eight cars for healthy peopleis not warranted.Currently this area is signed for no parking from 8-4 on school days. Dotyalso feels this is ahazard because kids getdropped off and picked upin the no parking area and that presents a hazard. Youngadvised the school is reworking the entrance andexit for the high school and Hyland so this should improve parent drop off and pickup. Motion by Olson to deny the request, not a good idea. Second by Clerkin.All ayes. Motion carried. st A request was receivedfor ahandicap parking sign on 41Avenue at 4056 Madison. The sign will be put in when the weather allows. B.POLICE None. C.COMMISSIONERS None. ADJOURNMENT Motion byDoty, second byOlsonto adjourn the meeting at 6:23p.m. Motion carried unanimously. Respectfully submitted, Sue Schmidtbauer,Public WorksSecretary MINNESOTA MANUAL ON UNIFORM TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES JANUARY 2014 The MUTCD guidelines for installing STOP or YIELDsigns at intersectionsare listed below: Engineering judgment should be used to establish intersection control. The following factors should be considered: A.Vehicular, bicycle, and pedestrian traffic volumes on all approaches; B.Number and angle of approaches; C.Approach speeds; D.Sight distance available on each approach; and E.Reported crash experience. YIELD or STOP signs should be used at anintersection if one or more of the following conditions exist: A.An intersection of a less important road with a main road where application of the normal right-of-way rule would not be expected to provide reasonable compliance with the law; B.A street entering a designated through highway or street; and/or C.An unsignalized intersection in a signalized area. In addition, the use of YIELD or STOP signs should be considered at the intersection of two minor streets or local roads where the intersection has more than three approaches and where one or more of the following conditions exist: A.The combined vehicular, bicycle, and pedestrian volume entering the intersection from all approaches averages more than 2,000 unitsper day. B.The ability to see conflicting traffic on an approach is not sufficient to allow a road user to stop or yield in compliance with the normal right-of-way rule if such stopping or yielding is necessary; and/or C.Crash records indicate that five or more crashes that involve the failure to yield the right-of-way at the intersection under the normal right-of-way rule have been reported withina 3-year period, or that three or more such crashes have been reported withina 2-year period. ST MADISON ST MADISON EFFERSONJ ST JEFFERSON ST STWASHINGTON WASHINGTON ST TH7 ST ST7TH TH ST 6TH ST HT ST 5TH ST HT ST 4TH ST COLUMBIA HEIGHTS POLICE DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM To: Columbia Heights Traffic Commission Members From: Lenny Austin, Captain stndth Subject: Accidents at 41 & 42 Avenue, 5 street to Washington Date:May 1, 2015 Below is a breakdown of reported crashes involving eight intersections from January 1, 2010 to April 24, 2015. I have also included a map of these intersections. Those intersections are as follows: stth 41 Avenue, from 5 Street to Washington Street. ndth 42 Avenue from 5 Street to Washington Street. st 41 Avenue Intersections: stth 41 Avenue and 5 Street There was one reported crash during this time period: 03/02/2014 at 3:38 p.m. Hit & Run Property Damage Accident. stth 41 Avenue and 6 Street. There were three reported crashes at this intersection during this time period. The breakdown is as follows: 01/12/2015 at 4:14 p.m. Property Damage Accident. 03/05/2012 at 7:28 a.m. Property Damage Accident. Driver cited. 05/11/2010 at 7:47 a.m. Personal Injury Accident. Driver cited. stth 41 Avenue and 7 Street. There were three reported crashes at this intersection during this time period. The breakdown is as follows: 02/15/2013 at 10:39 a.m. Property Damage Accident. Driver cited. 03/27/2012 at 12:30 p.m. Property Damage Accident. Driver cited. 10/28/2010 at 5:11 p.m. Property Damage Accident. st 41 Avenue and Washington Street. There were five reported crashes at this intersection during this time period. The breakdown is as follows: 11/22/2013 at 8:43 a.m. Property Damage Accident. Driver cited. 03/19/2013 at 3:15 p.m. Property Damage Accident. Driver cited. 10/15/2012 at 7:57 a.m. Property Damage Accident. Driver cited. 03/03/2011 at 6:58 p.m. Property Damage Accident. Drivers cited. 06/04/2010 at 8:56 a.m. Personal Injury Accident. nd 42 Avenue Intersections: ndth 42 Avenue and 5 Street. There are no reported crashes at this intersection during this time period. ndth 42 Avenue and 6 Street. There are no reported crashes at this intersection during this time period. ndth 42 Avenue and 7 Street. There have been nine reported crashes at this intersection during this time period. The breakdown is as follows: 03/02/2015 at 5:32 a.m. Property Damage Accident 11/16/2014 at 11:18 a.m. Property Damage Accident 02/07/2014 at 2:01 p.m. Property Damage Accident. Drivers cited. 02/04/2014 at 4:00 p.m. Personal Injury Accident. Drivers cited. 01/25/2014 at 6:45 p.m. Hit & Run Accident. Driver cited. 01/24/2014 at 7:41 p.m. Property Damage Accident. Driver cited. 02/05/2013 at 3:37 p.m. Personal Injury Accident. 07/30/2010 at 1:21 p.m. Personal Injury Accident. Driver cited. 06/04/2010 at 12:30 a.m. Personal Injury Accident. nd 42 Avenue and Washington Street. There have been five reported crashes at this intersection during this time period. The breakdown is as follows: 10/23/2014 at 2:41 p.m. Property Damage Accident. 08/09/2014 at 10:52 a.m. Hit & Run Property Damage Accident. 02/27/2014 at 12:44 p.m. Personal Injury Accident. 01/26/2014 at 3:08 p.m. Personal Injury Accident. 07/11/2011 at 12:20 p.m. Property Damage Accident. cc: Scott Nadeau, Chief of Police Kathy Young, Assistant City Engineer