City Tackles Traffic Management

By Joshua Sabatini, The Paducah Sun, Ky.

Mar. 15–The Menlo Park City Council supported Tuesday the findings of a traffic study for use in planning five developments expected to generate more than 2,000 additional car trips a day.

The traffic study details about $500,000 in traffic flow mitigation that the developers would have to pay in order to receive city approval.

The council was asked Tuesday night if it wanted to tack on additional mitigation. Additions were limited.

Council Member Lee Duboc said she would like to see an pedestrian light added at the crosswalk of Linfield Drive and Middlefield Road. “I worry about the amount of on-street parking on Linfield drive given the amount of housing that will go in there,” she said.

Council Member Andrew Cohen suggested decreasing the speed limit along Middlefield Road.

While this cannot be included as a mitigation, the council is going to explore the issue on its own. “It’s striking to me that Palo Alto has a 25-mile-per-hour speed limit and we have a 35-mile-per-hour speed limit. And I think it’s time for a change,” Cohen said.

Of the five projects, the City Council is expected to vote on two next week: The development of 22 homes at 110 Linfield Dr. and 34 homes at 175 Linfield Dr.

There are three other developments in the planning process and each one is required to undergo an environmental impact review. All three reviews would use the traffic analysis approved by council Tuesday night.

DKS Transportation Consultants, of Oakland, drafted the traffic study, known as the Linfield Drive, Middlefield Road and Willow Road Area-Wide Transportation Impact Analysis. The study area included 12 intersections and nine roadway segments.

The 321 Middlefield Rd. development converts about 48,000 square feet of office space into medical office space. At 75 Willow Rd., the 39,000 square feet of office space would come down to make way for 33 residential units. At 8 Homewood Pl., about 21,000 square feet of office space would be demolished and 37 residential units would be built.

“These are the decision points where we make our community more livable or not,” Council Member Kelly Fergusson said. “My heart sunk a little bit when I first read the staff report here because there are a lot of road intersections and road segments that are affected.” However, she added, “I think we’re on the right track here.”

There are nine mitigation projects in the study including a Caltrain Station Bike shelter, video detection at three affected intersections and a median for Linfield Drive.

ORIGINAL INSERTION TIME: 3/15/2006 1:32:53 AM

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