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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/13/2010 SC MinutesDirector Deputy Director Glen R. Andler Sean P. Dorsey Mount Prospect Public Works Department 1700 W. Central Road, Mount Prospect, Illinois 60056 -2229 MINUTES OF THE MOUNT PROSPECT SAFETY COMMISSION CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Mount Prospect Safety Commission was called to order at 7:01 p.m. on Monday, September 13, 2010. ROLL CALL Present upon roll call: John Keane Chuck Bencic Angel Campos Robert Fisher Fred Pampel Carol Tortorello Mike Eterno Buz Livingston Jeff Wulbecker Matt Lawrie Absent: None. Others in Attendance: Bob Smith See attached list. Chairman Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Police Department Representative Fire Department Representative Public Works Representative Traffic Engineer — Staff Liaison Police Department APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commissioner Fisher, seconded by Commissioner Campos, moved to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of the Safety Commission held on June 14, 2010. The minutes were approved by a vote of 8 -0 with Chairman Keane abstaining. CITIZENS TO BE HEARD There was no one in attendance that spoke on an issue not on the agenda. Safety Commission Meeting Page 1 of 5 September 13, 2010 OLD BUSINESS There was no old business to discuss. NEW BUSINESS A. HARVEST LANE / ALDI DRIVE TRAFFIC STUDY 1) Background Information Current Traffic Regulations 1. Harvest Lane and the Aldi drive is a T- intersection with a single Stop sign on the Aldi drive. 2. Business Center Drive and Harvest Lane is a T- intersection with a single Stop sign on Harvest Lane. 3. Parking is prohibited along both sides of Harvest Lane for the first 450' east of Business Center Drive. 4. The speed limits on Harvest Lane and Business Center Drive are 25 mph and 30 mph, respectively. 5. Harvest Lane and Business Center Drive are under the jurisdiction of the Village. The Aldi drive is a private driveway. Current Layout 1. The Aldi drive is two lanes wide with one inbound and one outbound lane. 2. Harvest Lane is a typical local street that widens at Business Center Drive to one inbound lane, one left turn lane and one right turn lane. 3. Business Center Drive is a four lane collector street. Current Traffic Conditions 1. Harvest Lane east of the Aldi drive experiences approximately 1000 vehicles per day. 2. Business Center Drive north of Harvest Lane experiences approximately 11,000 vehicles per day. 3. Manual turning movement counts were gathered during the midday and evening on a weekday and the midday on a Saturday. Overall, there were only a small percentage of motorists that disobeyed the No Right Turn sign (approximately 3% of those exiting the Aldi parking lot). The typical movements were left turns from the Aldi drive onto Harvest Lane and right turns from Harvest Lane into the Aldi parking lot. 4. During on -site observations, it was noted that motorists exiting the Aldi parking lot did not always yield the right -of -way to vehicles on Harvest Lane. On a few occasions a motorist exiting the Aldi lot pulled out in front of a vehicle either traveling east on Harvest Lane and continuing east into the subdivision or a vehicle traveling west on Harvest Lane approaching Business Center Drive. 5. In order to obey the No Right Turn sign, it is believed that residents of the Harvest Heights Subdivision and the neighborhood to the east will exit Rand Road, turn right onto Business Center Drive and turn right again onto Harvest Lane to get to their homes. 6. Between 2005 and 2007 as well as June 2009 and May 2010, there were two accidents at the Harvest Lane & Aldi drive intersection. This information was gathered during the original study and post- studies of Zone 10 as part of the Neighborhood Traffic Study. Issues 1. The No Right Turn sign was installed approximately 10 years ago during construction of the Menards building. It was not an original condition of plan approval by the Village Board of Trustees. Rather, after the start of construction a group of residents representing the Harvest Heights Subdivision asked that the sign be installed to deter construction traffic and future Safety Commission Meeting Page 2 of 5 September 13, 2010 cut through traffic into the neighborhood. The Village Board of Trustees agreed and Public Works was directed to install the sign. 2. The No Right Turn sign is not part of the Village Code as it is a regulation from a private drive. The Village Code prohibits turns from public streets. 3. Over the years the Village has received inquiries from residents within the Harvest Heights Subdivision and outside to remove the sign. Because of the ongoing inquiries the Engineering Division agreed to revisit the issue. 4. Traffic surveys were sent to the 67 properties within the Harvest Heights Subdivision as well as to Aldi and Menards to solicit their input on this issue. 56 surveys were returned. 32 are in favor of removing the sign and 24 want the sign to remain. Aldi and Menards did not respond. 5. The primary reason from the surveys for removing the sign is to allow residents easier access to their homes. The primary reason for leaving the sign is a concern over cut through traffic and higher speeds. A couple of surveys suggested prohibiting right turns except for residents. However, as Harvest Lane is a public street the Village cannot make this exception. 6. Cut through traffic can be a legitimate concern. When motorists who don't live in the area choose local streets to avoid congested arterial roads, the additional traffic can diminish the quality of life in the neighborhood. In this case, however, one could argue that the "neighborhood" does not just include the Harvest Heights Subdivision but the streets to the east as well, even to Wolf Road. Therefore, cut through traffic may only be those vehicles traveling from Harvest Lane past the boundary of Central Road or Wolf Road. 7. By removing the No Right Turn sign, the Engineering Division does not believe traffic volume will significantly increase in the neighborhood. Many residents today avoid exiting at the Aldi drive but still access the neighborhood via Harvest Lane. If traffic volume does increase on Harvest Lane and adjacent streets it would be difficult to categorically say that the increase is entirely cut through traffic. 2) Recommendations The decision to install the No Right Turn sign 10 years ago was made by the Village Board of Trustees in order to deter potential cut through traffic. At the time, the Engineering Division supported allowing right turns believing it would make for easier access for local residents. Today, it is inconvenient and can be difficult at times for residents to turn onto Rand Road and make additional turns in order to access their neighborhood. On the other hand, the Village is sensitive to change after 10 years regardless of whether the outcome proves to be minimal or significant. A considerable amount of traffic data has been collected in the neighborhood as part of the Neighborhood Traffic Study and can be used as a baseline should the No Right Turn sign be removed. The Engineering Division is supportive of removing the sign as it will allow easier and safer access for residents into the neighborhood. In addition, a majority of residents from the survey support removing the sign. Should the No Right Turn sign be removed, it is recommended that a restudy be performed in the spring of 2011. Traffic data would be gathered and another traffic survey sent to the Harvest Heights Subdivision. The new data would be compared to the original study to determine the effect of the sign removal. Based on the new data and feedback from the residents, the Engineering Division would make a final recommendation. The issue would then come before the Safety Commission again for a final decision. To reinforce to motorists exiting the Aldi parking lot that vehicles on Harvest Lane have the right -of -way, it recommended that a Cross Traffic Does Not Stop sign be installed below the Stop sign. Safety Commission Meeting Page 3 of 5 September 13, 2010 Recommendations: Remove the No Right Turn sign at the Aldi drive and perform a restudy in the spring of 2011. In addition, install a Cross Traffic Does Not Stop sign below the Stop sign at the Aldi drive. 3) Discussion Traffic Engineer Lawrie presented the traffic study performed by the Engineering Division at the intersection of Harvest Lane and the Aldi drive. This included the results of the neighborhood survey indicating that a majority of residents support removing the No Right Turn sign. Commissioner Fisher asked whether the traffic data was an accurate assessment of what is occurring at the intersection. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said the data collection dates were a good representation of a typical weekday and weekend. Commissioner Tortorello questioned whether the sign was included as part of the P.U.D. Agreement for the Menards development. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said that in Staff's research the sign was not part of the Agreement but he would review the document again. Commissioner Bencic asked whether a 1 -Way supplemental sign could be installed below the Stop sign in addition to the recommended Cross Traffic Does Not Stop sign. Traffic Engineer Lawrie responded that the 1 -Way sign is no longer allowed per the recently updated MUTCD. There were no more questions from the Commission so Chairman Keane opened the discussion to the audience. Richard Benson, 220 Autumn Lane, introduced himself as president of the Harvest Heights Subdivision. He was supportive of the Cross Traffic Does Not Stop sign but was against removing the No Right Turn sign. He was concerned that there would be additional traffic and higher speeds on Autumn Lane. He believed the convenience of allowing motorists' easier access to the neighborhood would make the street less safe. Giuseppe Madia, 224 Autumn Lane, agreed with Mr. Benson and asked that the No Right Turn sign remain. Mike Alaimo, 304 Westgate Road, expressed his desire to have the No Right Turn sign removed. He felt it was a safety hazard to ask motorists to turn onto Rand Rand and make their way back to the neighborhood with the sign in place. He too does not want to create any safety issues in the neighborhood and liked the idea of revisiting the issue next spring. Chairman Keane brought the discussion back to the Commission. He asked whether the No Right Turn sign is enforceable since it isn't specified in the Village Code. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said that prohibited turns from public streets onto public streets are uniquely identified in the Village Code. Since Aldi Drive is a private driveway, there isn't an individual ordinance that describes this location in the Village Code just like all other prohibited turns involving private driveways. Sergeant Eterno added there are, however, general ordinances in the Village Code that would apply to this situation making the sign enforceable. There was some general discussion regarding the potential additional traffic along Harvest Lane and Autumn Lane should the No Right Turn sign be removed. While the additional traffic may be residents who live in the area and not considered cut through traffic, it would be important that motorists follow the speed limit and not diminish safety. Safety Commission Meeting Page 4 of 5 September 13, 2010 Commissioner Pampel made a motion to remove the No Right Turn sign, install the Cross Traffic Does Not Stop sign, and restudy the issue next spring. It was seconded by Commissioner Tortorello. Traffic Engineer Lawrie suggested that should the motion be approved, it be contingent upon review of the P.U.D. Agreement to verify the No Right Turn sign was not included in the document. If it was, the issue would need to go before the Village Board of Trustees for a final decision. It was agreed by Commissioner Pampel and included as an amended motion. The motion was approved by a vote of 9 -0. Traffic Engineer Lawrie indicated that should the sign not be a part of the P.U.D. Agreement, the Village Board of Trustees would be informed of the Safety Commission's decision but it would not require a vote by them since it was not originally approved by a vote. Mr. Benson said the issue would be discussed at their next Association meeting in a couple of weeks. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said he would contact Mr. Benson before the sign would be removed. Sergeant Eterno said the Police Traffic Unit would provide speed limit and Stop sign enforcement after the changes and stay in contact with the Engineering Division. COMMISSION ISSUES Commissioner Bencic asked that the Commission directory be updated and distributed to the members. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said that he would e-mail the latest information to the group and ask for any corrections. An updated directory would then be sent to the members. Sergeant Eterno announced that this would be his latest Safety Commission meeting as he will be promoted to Commander next week and move to the midnight shift. He introduced Sergeant Bob Smith who would be taking over as the Traffic Unit Supervisor and attending future Safety Commission meetings. Commissioner Tortorello asked about the outcome of the Central Road alley complaint. A resident recently contacted the Village about motorists cutting through they alley as well as violating the one -way westbound designation. Sergeant Eterno said the Police Department has been providing enforcement and contacted utility and waste hauler companies to use an alternate route. He indicated the complainant has seen a noticeable difference and is appreciative of the Police Department's efforts. ADJOURNMENT With no further business to discuss, the Safety Commission voted 9 -0 to adjourn at 7:58 p.m. upon the motion of Commissioner Tortorello. Commissioner Pampel seconded the motion. Respectfully submitted, Matthew P. Lawrie, P.E. Traffic Engineer h: \engineering \traffic\ safety _commission \recs &mins \sept I Omin.doc Safety Commission Meeting Page 5 of 5 September 13, 2010