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Home My WebLink About06/12/2006 SC minutes I,,' Director Glen R. Andler MoUlt Prospect Deputy Director Sean P. Dorsey Mount Prospect Public Works Department 1700 W. Central Road, Mount Prospect, Illinois 60056-2229 MINUTES OF THE MOUNT PROSPECT SAFETY COMMISSION DRAFT CALL TO ORDER The Regular Meeting of the Mount Prospect Safety Commission was called to order at 7:15 p.m. on Monday, June 12,2006. ROLL CALL Present upon roll call: Chuck Bencic John Keane Marshall Petersen Carol Tortorello Buz Livingston John Wagner Matt Lawrie Absent: Kevin Grouwinkel Mark Miller Paul Bures Others in Attendance: See attached list APPROVAL OF MINUTES Chairman Vice Chairman Commissioner Commissioner Fire Department Representative Police Department Representative Traffic Engineer - Staff Liaison Commissioner Commissioner Public Works Representative Commissioner Keane, seconded by Commissioner Tortorello, moved to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of the Safety Commission held on March 13, 2006. The minutes were approved by a vote of 6-0. CITIZENS TO BE HEARD There was no one in attendance that spoke on an issue not on the agenda. Phone 847/870-5640 Fax 847/253-~~3T1 wvvw. mou ntprospect.org ,..,s OLD BUSINESS Commissioner Petersen asked if Costco has made any pedestrian crossing improvements in front of their store as suggested by Staff. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said that he met with Costco representatives and was told signs would be installed. As of yet, however, there has been no changes. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said he would follow-up with Costco. NEW BUSINESS A) TRAFFIC STUDY AT FOREST VIEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 1) Background Information The school, specifically Meg Weickert, principal at Forest View Elementary School, and the Parent Teacher Organization (PTO), has requested that the Village review the current traffic regulations along the public streets adjacent to the school. Concerns have been identified based on the current conditions. As a result, the school is seeking changes to improve pedestrian and vehicle safety. Timeframe June 2005 Engineering Staff received request from Police Department to add No Parking signs near intersection of Estates Drive and Deborah Lane. Engineering Staff monitored drop-off/pick-up and noted several traffic issues. Engineering Staff met with principal to discuss school's concerns. Engineering Staff met with PTO to discuss school's concerns and present preliminary recommendations. School sent letter to Village requesting changes to traffic regulations. Engineering Staff decided to delay study to avoid potential changes during school year. Engineering Staff performed study. Sept 2005 Oct 2005 Nov 2005 Dec 2005 May 2006 Public Notice Those homes directly impacted by potential changes as well as parents of those children who attend Forest View were notified of the Safety Commission Meeting and invited to send comments. 2) Existing Conditions Traffic Regulations It is unclear as to when the current traffic regulations around the school were enacted. A review of the Village Board Minutes did not reveal any discussion on this issue in the last 30 years. It is believed the signs have been in place since the 1960's or early' 1970's. 1. According to the Village Code, Estates Drive is one-way eastbound between Carol Lane and Crestwood Lane on school days between the hours of 8:30-9:30am and 3:00-4:00pm. It is posted as such. 2. According to the Village Code, left turns are prohibited from northbound Crestwood Lane onto Estates Drive on school days between the hours of 8:30-9:30am and 3:00-4:00pm. It is posted as such. Phone ::>1.lf:\7:}':;l'>~I,,\ F- (j."~ t~.<t.ll.)::~ ,,;,. ~.:,L:\ ';"..:; ....:;'/,h{ii'. r~,~~~~_:;i " '" 3. According to the Village Code, right turns are prohibited from southbound Crestwood Lane onto Estates Drive on school days between the hours of 8:30-9:30am and 3:00-4:00pm. It is posted as such. 4. According to the Village Code, there is no stopping, standing or parking along the north and south sides of Estates Drive from Deborah Lane to a point 150' west. However, it is not posted. 5. According to the Village Code, Estates Drive has a 20mph speed limit and the intersection of Estates Drive and Crestwood Lane is controlled with Stop signs in all four directions. It is posted as such. Traffic Lavout 1. The streets in the neighborhood including Estates Drive, Carol Lane, Deborah Lane and Crestwood Lane are all approximately 28' wide (back-of-curb to back-of-curb). 2. There is a drop-off/pick-up lane on the south side of Estates Drive in front of the school approximately 125' in length. 3. There are painted crosswalks along Estates Drive at Carol Lane, Deborah Lane and Crestwood Lane. School crossing signs are also visible in advance of and at the crosswalks. 4. The school's parking lot has 57 standard spaces and 3 handicap spaces. The parking lot also has a lane exclusive to buses. 5. Signs prohibit parents from dropping-off and picking-up students in the parking lot. Traffic Conditions 1. For kindergarten to 6th grade, school begins at 9:10am. Preschool begins at 9:20am. 2. The morning kindergarten and preschool ends around 11 :45am. 3. The afternoon kindergarten and preschool begins around 1 :OOpm. 4. For kindergarten to 6th grade, school ends at 3:30pm. Preschool ends at 3:20pm. 5. Most buses drop-off and pick-up students in the parking lot. The preschool buses use the drop-off/pick-up lane on Estates Drive when space is available. 6. During the morning drop-off, there is not a significant amount of congestion. 5-8 cars were typically observed parked on Estates Drive and Deborah Lane. 30-40 cars were observed using the drop-off lane in the morning. And approximately 5 cars were seen dropping-off their child in the parking lot. 7. During the lunch drop-off/pick-up, there is not a significant amount of congestion. 6-10 cars were observed parked on Estates Drive and Deborah Lane. The preschool buses and a few cars were parked in the pick-up lane on Estates Drive. 8. During the afternoon pick-up, there was traffic congestion for approximately 10 minutes. On average, 25 cars were parked on Estates Drive, 8 cars on Deborah Lane and 1 car on Carol Lane. 3) Staff Study Issues The principal and members of the PTO conveyed several traffic-related issues to the Engineering Staff during our meetings. The Engineering Staff also spent several days observing the traffic. . The issues include: 1. Disobedience by parents and teachers to the one-way designation during morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up. 2. Cars parked on both sides of Estates Drive facing eastbound during times of two-way traffic. 3. Double parking by parents during afternoon pick-up. 4. Students walking between cars and crossing Estates Drive at non-crosswalk locations. 5. One narrow travel lane with cars parked on both sides of the street. Phone 847/87"O-SG,;.(i ;.':;_.~:., f; " ;'~~~.~,.:~> .~./ l' \~\i\tv",v <~T[-'~.;n~';"i>'( l'~PC,(:[ nl\~~ ,..1 6. Difficult for buses to turn from lot onto Estates Drive with cars parked on the north side of the street. 7. Cars park close to crosswalks limiting visibility of students. 8. Cars on Deborah Lane not yielding the right-of-way to cars on Estates Drive. 9. Cars not yielding to the right at the uncontrolled intersection of Rusty Drive and Deborah Lane. 10. Parents do not pay attention to student safety patrol. Observation & Evaluation Bus Drop-off/Pick-up Location - Ideally, the location for buses to drop-off and pick-up students should be separated from other vehicle traffic. For this school, the buses have an exclusive area in the parking lot. All buses except for the preschool buses currently use this area. Short-Term Parking Location - Short-term parking would be for those parents who need to go into the school for no more than 10-20 minutes. Ideally, short-term parking should be separated from the drop-off and pick-up area. Otherwise, congestion increases and forces parents to drop-off and pick-up their child further from the school. For this school, there is currently not a dedicated short-term parking area in the parking lot. Short-term parking was observed on Estates Drive and Deborah Lane. Long-Term Parking Location - Long-term parking would be for teachers, administration and volunteers who are in school for most of the day. Ideally, there should be adequate spaces in a parking lot to accommodate the demand for long-term parking. Otherwise, the public streets become more congested. For this school, there were 10-20 spaces typically open during the school day but a few cars still parked on Estates Drive. Parent Drop-off / Pick-up Location - Ideally, the location for parents to drop-off and pick-up their child should be separated from the other three locations above. For this school, Estates Drive and Deborah Lane are the primary streets. Parents are not allowed in the parking lot to drop-off or pick-up their child. Approximately 35 cars were observed parked on both sides of the street during the peak time, afternoon pick-up. One-way Designation along Estates Drive - Estates Drive between Carol Lane and Crestwood Lane is one-way eastbound for one hour in the morning and one hour in the afternoon on school days. This part-time one-way designation appears to lead to confusion and disobedience. During Staffs observations, cars were often seen driving and parked in the wrong direction. At times when the one-way street was in effect, parents and residents had their cars parked facing westbound. At times when the one-way designation was not in effect, parents and long-term parking (staffor volunteers) were parked on the north side of the street facing eastbound. School staff was also observed leaving the parking lot after school and turning left onto Estates Drive in violation of the signs. According to a letter from the school to the Village in 1995, this issue has been ongoing. Staff also monitored the number of cars directly affected by the one-way designation during the morning and afternoon. Based on our observations, the one-way designation forces 15-20 cars coming from the southeast to go around the block rather than using the direct route of westbound Estates Drive. On-street Parking - During the drop-off and pick-up times, cars were observed parked on both sides of Estates Drive and Deborah Lane. Estates Drive had cars from Carol Lane to a point half way between Deborah Lane and Crestwood Lane. Deborah Lane had cars from Estates Drive to a point approximately Phone 847/87U!:;t;'(j Ft{~. i~/.'iI.'"o:; ,,0'.0'"'' t' \,!'<.('<';"" 4 ',1' 100' north. The width of the streets allows one travel lane with cars parked on both sides. Therefore, on Deborah Lane, two-way traffic could not be maintained. On Estates Drive, double parking in the travel lane was observed and backed up traffic. Another issue with cars parked on both sides of the street is there is a greater tendency for students not to use the crosswalks. As observed, this presents a safety concern as students are walking between cars and drivers may not see them. Prohibiting parking on one side of the street creates two travel lanes. It also reduces the potential for students to cross at non-crosswalk locations if the parking restrictions are on the side opposite the school. Another issue with on-street parking is cars parking close to the crosswalks. Village Code prohibits parking within 30' on approach to a Stop sign and 20' from a crosswalk. Signs are currently not posted so, as a result, parents park near and sometimes on top of crosswalks. As observed, this forces students to walk around cars and creates a sight obstruction making it difficult for them to cross the street. Intersection Control - The Residential Intersection Traffic Control Program involves reviewing all Village intersections for proper traffic control. It is currently being done neighborhood by neighborhood but we don't expect to get to this area for a couple of years. To address some of the concerns raised by the school and observed by Staff, three intersections near the school were evaluated using the guidelines established in the Village-wide program. Over a three day period in May, traffic data was gathered along the affected streets using mechanical traffic counters. Field observations and measurements were also made at each of the intersections. Estates Drive & Carol Lane Intersection Characteristics North-South Street East-West Street Street Names Carol Lane Estates Drive Existin~ Traffic Control None None Classification of Street Local Local Traffic Volume . Daily Traffic Volume 545 437 . Peak Hour Traffic Volume 85 56 # Accidents Per Year . 2003 0 0 . 2004 0 0 . 2005 0 0 Meets all-way Stop si~n criteria? No Do the intersecting streets have Yes approx. the same volume of traffic? If YES, how was it determined which Stop the street that ends at the intersection street should be controlled? Street to be controlled Estates Drive Estates Drive & Deborah Lane Intersection Characteristics North-South Street East-West Street Street Names Deborah Lane Estates Drive Existin2 Traffic Control None None Classification of Street Local Local Traffic Volume . Dailv Traffic V ollJllle 197 437 . Peak Hour Traffic Volume 47 56 # Accidents Per Year . 2003 " 0 0 . 2004 0 0 . 2005 0 0 Meets all-wav Stop silm criteria? No Do the intersecting streets have No r: f';~ ';.-: ~J"j. 1 t.~:: !~:~~'}'" 9:3 ;'7 ; ;,:'" .',:....~ i ! lU! ,~L~pl.;'-;>;~:h::..:':\ t:'r(! Phone 847/8((j.:;G"O approx. the same volume of traffic? If NO, was the lower volume street Yes selected for Stop si~n control? Street to be controlled Deborah Lane Rusty Drive & Deborah Lane Intersection Characteristics North-South Street East-West Street Street Names Deborah Lane Rustv Drive Existin~ Traffic Control None None Classification of Street Local Local Traffic Volume . Daily Traffic Volume 197 . 382 . Peak Hour Traffic Volume 47 66 # Accidents Per Year . 2003 0 0 . 2004 0 0 . 2005 0 0 Meets aU-way Stop si~n criteria? No Do the intersecting streets have No approx. the same volume of traffic? If NO, was the lower volume street Yes selected for Stop si~n control? Street to be controlled Deborah Lane Estates Drive & Deborah Lane Crossing - This intersection experiences the greatest pedestrian activity compared to other intersections near the school. The crosswalk across Estates Drive on the east side of Deborah Lane is monitored by the. . student safety patrol. It also has a painted .crosswalkand student crossing signs. Unfortunately, the students are not effective in ensuring safety for pedestrians crossing the street. A parent crossing guard or teacher would better serve to cross the students safely and to communicate with drivers to drive cautiously. There is a sidewalk ramp on the northwest comer of the intersection to cross Estates Drive. However, the south side of the street is the drop- off/pick-up lane. Students do not cross here and should not be encouraged to do so. The sidewalk ramp can be removed through the Village Sidewalk Program. The crosswalk across Deborah Lane does not see much activity and is not monitored by the student safety patrol. It does have a painted crosswalk and student crossing signs. ResidentlParent Survey - As part of the study, 38 surveys were sent to nearby properties soliciting their opinion on removing the one-way street designation and adding parking restrictions. 11 surveys (29%) were returned. The results were mixed. Some residents supported the changes and some suggested no change. A couple of residents commented on the need for traffic control at Rusty Drive and Deborah Lane. The school also distributed 300 surveys to the parents. 8 surveys were returned. Again, the results were mixed. 4) Recommendations 1. At one time, the part-time one-way designation along Estates Drive served the school well. However, drivers today are continually disobeying the posted signs. This creates a false sense of security for pedestrians and creates confusion along the street. The one-way designation also adds more traffic to streets like Carol Lane by forcing traffic around the block. While converting the street back to two-way would be a significant change, we believe it would be safer than the continual disobedience to the current one-way designation. And converting the street to one-way at all times does not seem to make the street any safer Phone 847/WfO ":34G ~'n~'~ n4 //.:~~~5.:1'''~:;\>~ '77 V-..:\F/\iV ~. than a two-way street and, in fact, would add an extra burden on the Police Department to monitor and enforce. Recommendation: Remove the one-way eastbound designation along Estates Drive between Carol Lane and Crestwood Lane, converting it back to a two-way street. 2. Parking along both sides of Estates Drive in front of the school is a concern. It prevents two- way traffic and encourages students to cross at non-crosswalk locations to waiting parents on the north side of the street. The Engineering Staff has found success in prohibiting parking on the side of the street opposite the school at other schools such as Lions Park Elementary and Fairview Elementary to address these issues. In this case, it would' also make it easier for buses to exit the parking lot and turn onto Estates Drive. Recommendation: Enact No Stopping, Standing, Parking School Days 8:00am-4:00pm along the north side of Estates Drive between Carol Lane and Crestwood Lane. 3. There are currently approximately 8 cars that park on Deborah Lane during afternoon pick- up. This situation prevents two-way traffic near its intersection with Estates Drive. By prohibiting parking on the north side of Estates Drive durin~ the school day, approximately 15 cars will be displaced. Some can park on the south side of Estates Drive but many will consider the next closest option, Deborah Lane. Additional parking on the street will cause even more congestion. Prohibiting parking on one side of the street, specifically the west side has several advantages. First, it allows for two-way traffic. Second, it prevents students from having to cross both Estates Drive and Deborah Lane to get to a waiting parent. And third, with cars parked on the east side of the street cars will be facing north and parents will drive away from the school after picking up their child. This will limit the congestion along Estates Drive. The school has requested a part time parking restriction along Deborah Lane (one hour in the morning and one hour in the afternoon). However, similar to the part-time one-way designation, this can lead to confusion and to long-term parked cars easily violating the restriction. Recommendation: Enact No Stopping, Standing, Parking School Days 8:00am-4:00pm along the west side of Deborah Lane between Rusty Drive and Estates Drive. 4. Cars parked on or adjacent to crosswalks limit the visibility of pedestrians crossing the street. Village Code prohibits parking within 30' on approach to a Stop sign and within 20' of a crosswalk. Recommendation: Install No Parking Here To Corner signs as appropriate at Estates Drive & Carol Lane, Estates Drive & Deborah Lane, and Estates Drive & Crestwood Lane. 5. While not posted, the Village Code currently prohibits parking on Estates Drive near Deborah . Lane. Recommendation: Repeal the ordinance that prohibits stopping, standing, parking on the north side of Estates Drive from Deborah Lane to a point 150' west and amend the ordinance to make the south side of Estates Drive from Deborah Lane to a point 150' west a drop-off/pick-up zone only. 6. In the next couple of years, the traffic control at every intersection in this neighborhood will be reviewed as part of the Residential Intersection Traffic Control Program. to address the concerns raised by the school, the Engineering Staff revIewed three intersections following the guidelines established in the Village-wide program. Recommendation: Install a Stop sign on Estates Drive at Carol Lane, install a Stop sign on Deborah Lane at Estates Drive, and install Stop signs on Deborah Lane at Rusty Drive. 7. Most buses use the bus lane in the parking lot for drop-off and pick-up. To relieve some congestion along Estates Drive, it would be advantageous that all buses including those for the preschool level use the parking lot. Recommendation: The school should have all buses use the bus lane in the parking lot for drop-off and pick-up. 8. On any given day, we observed 10-20 available spaces in the parking lot. However, there were 2-5 cars parked on Estates Drive at different times of the day. To relieve some congestion along Estates Drive and open up drop-off and pick-up space, short-term and long- term parking should be in the 10t. Recommendation: The school should ask teachers and volunteers to park in the lot rather than on Estates Drive. The school should also Phone 847/870")640 J,' .-! '( :.' ~ ~ ..;.,'"9.' " 'N\;~ ,;':j, n.:~q...:r:".\Y. ;:-y ~.:itf" consider converting 4 parking spaces to short-term parking (15 minute limit) to free up drop-off and pick-up space on the street. 9. While the Engineering Staff supports Ii crossing guard at Estates Drive and Deborah Lane, having a student safety patrol at this location is not effective. Students and parents tend to obey the direction of an adult over a child. Recommendation: The school ~hould solicit a parent, tea.cher or volunteer to serve as a crossing guard at Estates Drive and Deborah Lane. to. The sidewalk ramp to cross Estates Drive on the west side of Deborah Lane directs pedestrians into the drop-off/pick-up lane. The appropriate crossing of Estates Drive is on the east side of Deborah Lane. Recommendation: Remove the sidewalk ramp to cross Estates Drive on the west side of Deborah Lane. 11. If any changes are approved, they should be done during the summer months before school resumes in order to avoid any confusion. Notification to parents in August and police presence during the first week of school will be important to provide a smooth transition. Recommendation: Complete any changes before school resumes in the fall, provide notification to parents, and have the Police Department educate parents and enforce the new traffic regulations during the first week of school. 5) Discussion Chairman Bencic opened the discussion to the audience. Meg Weickert, principal at Forest View Elementary School, shared concerns from the school's perspective with the current traffic conditions. During the morning and afternoon, there is a lot of traffic and students are often seen walking between cars. She also mentioned that the buses have difficulty on occasion picking,.up. students with all the traffic. Jamil Baum, 1713 Martin Avenue, is on the PTO and also expressed concern with the number of cars and is looking for changes to improve the safety. Ellen Behles, 807 S. Carol Lane, shared the constant gridlock that occurs at Estates Drive and Deborah Lane during afternoon pick-up. She is concerned for the students who cross at this busy intersection. Albert McGarrity, 509 Deborah Lane, is concerned that by restricting parking to one side of the street that cars will drive much faster than they do today. He also believes stop signs should be at Deborah Lane and Rusty Drive. MaryAnn McGarrity, 509 Deborah Lane, also expressed a desire for stop signs at Deborah Lane and Rusty Drive. She believes it is a dangerous intersection. She recognizes there is a lot of traffic but believes allowing two-way traffic on Estates Drive will create more confusion than the current part-time one-way designation. Nancy Reisa, 1203 Sunset Road, believes the one-way street is very confusing and difficult for the Police Department to constantly enforce. It presents a false sense of security when drivers disobey the one-way signs. She also supports additional stop signs. Chairman Bencic brought the issue back to the Commission. He asked Traffic Engineer Lawrie to present Staff s study and recommendations. Traffic Engineer Lawrie provided a PowerPoint presentation on the traffic study. At the end of the presentation, Chairman Bencic asked the Commission if they had any questions or comments. Commissioner Tortorello stated she supports the recommended changes. Phone 847/870-:"):),(U I'v ;'",' ".:" ~"~"'~ " i._ ~ \... Commissioner Keane believes something needs to be done. Commissioner Petersen asked about the number of buses using the bus lane and the number using the parking lane on Estates Drive. Ms. Weickert provided an explanation and mentioned that the school district is looking to better coordinate the bus timing to reduce conflicts with parent parking. There was some additional conversation about bus drop-off and pick-up. A member of the audience brought up the issue of street parking during the one-way designation. Commander Wagner explained the difficulties the Police Department has with enforcing the current regulations and said the proposed changes will make it easier to enforce and safer for students to get to schoo1. Traffic Engineer Lawrie clarified the prop~sed parking restrictions to the audience as there was some misinterpretation that parking on the street would be prohibited at all times. He also explained the advantages and reasoning for the parking restrictions. There was some discussion about building parking spaces on the east side of the school but Traffic Engineer Lawrie he said he didn't believe there was enough room. Ms. Weickert said she would look into making it a policy for all staff and volunteers to park in the lot so as to free up parking spaces on Estates Drive. Commissioner Keane, seconded by Commissioner Petersen, moved to approve the recommendations of the Village Traffic Engineer and to review the effectiveness of the changes in one year. The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0. COMMISSION ISSUES There were no other issues brought up by the Commission. ADJOURNMENT With no further business to discuss, the Safety Commission voted 6-0 to adjourn at 8:30 p.m. upon the motion of Commissioner Tortorello. Commissioner Keane seconded the motion. Respectfully submitted, ~. Matthew P. Lawrie, P .E. Traffic Engineer h:\engineering\traffic\safety _ commission\recs&mins\june06min.doc Phone: ::3'~:; Ifr,;' P ,; i! f .'V f:'.Uf: ./C '. ,.r:, (1 if'" ;','\,I} :"~;;'{ '"1