Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/14/2011 TSC MinutesIk Mount nt Prc cc~t Director Sean P. Dorsey Mount Prospect Public Works Department 1700 W. Central Road, Mount Prospect, Illinois 60056 -2229 MINUTES OF THE MOUNT PROSPECT TRANSPORTATION SAFETY COMMISSION CALL TO ORDER Deputy Director Jason H. Leib The regular meeting of the Mount Prospect Transportation Safety Commission was called to order at 7:07 p.m. on Monday, November 14, 2011. ROLL CALL Present upon roll call: John Keane Chairman Chuck Bencic Commissioner Angel Campos Commissioner Robert Fisher Commissioner Carol Tortorello Commissioner Bob Smith Police Department Representative Dane Phenegar Fire Department Representative Matt Lawrie Traffic Engineer — Staff Liaison Absent: Fred Pampel Commissioner Paul Bures Public Works Representative Others in Attendance: Ken Brey 18 S. Owen Street APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commissioner Bencic, seconded by Commissioner Campos, moved to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of the Safety Commission held on July 11, 2011. The minutes were approved by a vote of 6 -0 with Sergeant Smith abstaining. CITIZENS TO BE HEARD Ken Brey, 18 S. Owen Street, was interested in knowing when the Village's Bicycle Plan would be presented to the Commission. Traffic Engineer Lawrie responded that it was scheduled to be discussed at the December meeting. Mr. Brey was invited to attend next month's meeting. Safety Commission Meeting Page 1 of 4 November 11, 2011 OLD BUSINESS There was no old business to discuss. NEW BUSINESS A. WELLER LANE PARKING REVIEW 1) Background Information Parking is prohibited at all times along both sides of Weller Lane between Central Road and Busse Avenue according to the Village Code. Signs are currently posted to reflect this ordinance. Parking is prohibited 2:00am — 6:00am on all Village streets including Weller Lane. Per the direction of the Village Manager, signs were installed in September 2011 that prohibits stopping, standing, parking along the east side of Weller Lane on school days from 8:30am — 4:30pm. Weller Lane is 26' wide (back -of -curb to back -of- curb), narrower than a standard width street. Adjacent local streets in the neighborhood are a standard 31' wide (back -of -curb to back -of- curb). All of the streets in the neighborhood have a 25 mph speed limit. Weller Lane experiences approximately 300 vehicles per day. On school days, approximately 30 vehicles park on Weller Lane in the morning, 2 at the lunch hour, and 60 in the afternoon. At the beginning of the school year, vehicles were parking on both sides of street. Since mid September, vehicles are only allowed to park on the west side of the street during school hours. On school days, approximately 5 vehicles park on Busse Avenue just east of Weller Lane in the morning and 10 in the afternoon. No vehicles associated with the school park on Cleven Avenue just east of Weller Lane during the school day. 2) Issues Because of the crowded conditions in the Westbrook School parking lot throughout the school day, many parents choose to park on Weller Lane and walk over the bridge to the school. Westbrook School currently instructs pre- kindergarten, kindergarten and first grade students. The young ages of the students cause parents to park on the street and walk them to school rather than simply drop them off. School District 57 restructured their bus policy this school year resulting in fewer students riding the bus. All students, regardless of distance to school, are required to pay in order to ride. Many parents have chosen to drive their child to school now. At the beginning of the school year, residents along Weller Lane were notified that the Village would monitor the parking situation. Also, the school encouraged parents to only park on one side of Weller Lane. However, not everyone complied. This made access along the street difficult. It also was affecting services such as garbage pick -up and street sweeping. The daily parking concerns along Weller Lane required immediate action. Per the direction of the Village Manager, signs were installed in mid September prohibiting stopping, standing, parking along the east side Weller Lane between Busse Avenue and Cleven Avenue on school days from 8:30am — 4:30pm. Safety Commission Meeting Page 2 of 4 November 11, 2011 Both residents and parents were notified prior to installation of the signs. None of the residents objected to the signs. Since installation of the signs, parents have complied by parking only on the west side of Weller Lane. This has improved traffic conditions along the street. 5 — 10 vehicles continue to park on Busse Avenue. This occurs for a 15- minute period during morning drop -off and afternoon pick- up. Traffic conditions have not been significantly affected since Busse Avenue is a wider street than Weller Lane, the congestion is for a short period of time and the number of parked vehicles is not a lot. A notification letter was sent to the 18 properties along Weller Lane and to the school soliciting their comments on this issue. The Village received six completed surveys. All said the new signs have improved traffic conditions along their street. 3) Recommendation Enact an ordinance prohibiting stopping, standing, parking along the east side Weller Lane between Busse Avenue and Cleven Avenue on school days from 8:30am — 4:30pm. The newly installed signs appear to have addressed the traffic concerns along the street. Residents can access their homes easier, services are no longer affected, and emergency vehicles can travel without being slowed down by parked vehicles. To finalize the issue, an ordinance reflecting the parking restriction needs to be passed by the Village Board of Trustees. 4) Discussion Traffic Engineer Lawrie provided background information on the subject and highlighted the positive impact the signs have had on the street. He also provided the results of the resident survey. Commissioner Bencic asked whether parents were complying with the parking restriction signs or whether there continued to be a problem. Traffic Engineer Lawrie responded that parents are complying and two -way traffic is again possible with cars only parking on one side of the street. Clarification was asked on the timeframe of the parking restrictions. Traffic Engineer Lawrie responded that the signs only affected the east side of Weller Lane and only on school days between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm. Commissioner Tortorello wanted to know the width of Weller Lane and how it compared to other streets in the neighborhood. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said it is 26' wide and typical for many of the streets in the neighborhood. However, it is narrower than the Village's standard width of 31'. Sergeant Smith and Battalion Chief Phenegar agreed that restricting parking to one side makes it much easier and safer for emergency vehicles to access the street and adjacent homes. Traffic Engineer repeated that the residents along Weller Lane support the parking restriction signs as it has allowed them to pull in and out of their driveways easily again. Commissioner Bencic made a motion to concur with the recommendation of the traffic engineer to enact an ordinance prohibiting stopping, standing, parking along the east side Weller Lane between Busse Avenue and Cleven Avenue on school days from 8:30am — 4:30pm. It was seconded by Commissioner Tortorello. Safety Commission Meeting Page 3 of 4 November 11, 2011 The motion was approved by a vote of 7 -0. COMMISSION ISSUES Commissioner Fisher brought up the condition of Mount Prospect Road. He mentioned the road is deteriorating and needs to be reconstructed. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said he is not aware of the County's schedule to improve the road. There was some general discussion on the history of the road. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said he would provide an update at the next meeting. Traffic Engineer Lawrie reminded the group that the Village's Bicycle Plan would be presented to the Commission at the December meeting. ADJOURNMENT With no further business to discuss, the Safety Commission voted 7 -0 to adjourn at 7:44 p.m. upon the motion of Commissioner Bencic. Commissioner Fisher seconded the motion. Respectfully submitted, Matthew P. Lawrie, P.E. Traffic Engineer h:\ engi nee ring\ traffic\ safety_ commission \recs &mins \novemberllm in. doc Safety Commission Meeting Page 4 of 4 November 11, 2011