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Traffic Speed Reduction in Marbrey LandingThe Board of Directors have received written comments from several homeowners who have raised concerns about vehicles traveling in excess of the posted 25 mile per hour speed limit. Enforcement of the speed limit by the local police department would effectively curtail a majority of these occurrences. In 2004, the District One Uniform Patrol of the Durham Police Department was invited to our neighborhood by the Marbrey Landing Homeowners Association Board of Directors to observe the speeds motorist were traveling through our neighborhood. During the first week of March they parked a radar- equipped surveillance device called the "speed wagon" on Armitage Drive. The speed wagon is equipped with a large yellow numerical display showing the speed a motorist is traveling in real-time. The speed wagon is battery powered and it's equipped with a solar panel to provide a charge to the battery package. The trailer operates silently and it completely self contained with everything necessary to operate 24 hours per day/ 7 days per week. It appears to have provided the needed incentive for motorist to slow down when traveling through of neighborhood. Our thanks to Captain Jim Bjurstrom, District 1 Commander, Durham Police Department ; 919 560-4281 ext. 242; he's credited for working with the MLHOA Board, the speed wagon was his idea. Captain Bjurstrom indicated "we like to set up the speed trailer at first to let neighborhoods know that we are monitoring the area." The Uniform Patrol will be back in our neighborhood ready to handout citations to motorists speeding through our neighborhood. Please drive safely through Marbrey Landing In 2004, we discovered there were only two speed limit signs installed throughout our neighborhood and both of them were located on Armitage Drive. We contacted Captain Jim Bjurstrom for assistance and advice. He put us in touch with Terry Thompson of the Department of Transportation (DOT); 919-560-4366. Mrs. Thompson arranged to conduct an assessment of our neighborhood speed limit signs during the first week of March. Five additional speed limit signs were installed, two on Marbrey Lane and three more on Thistlerock Lane. We also discussed the idea of having other street signs installed in our neighborhood such as those displaying "Speed Strictly Enforced by Radar" and "Children At Play" with Mrs. Thompson. She's quoted with the following reply;
During the time the DOT conducted their survey, they discovered multiple violations of a North Carolina State Statute that basically prohibits children from playing [basketball] in the street. They advised the Board that this is a Class 2 Misdemeanor and homeowners who do not relocate their portable basketball goals no less than 10 feet from the street curb onto their own private property, are not in compliance with the statute. They indicated they will permanently remove the basketball goals, by force if necessary if those homeowners fail to comply with a written warning from the Homeowners Association and or the Department of Transportation.
SPEED HUMPS The implementation of speed humps (a.k.a. "calming devices") in our neighborhood is considered by some homeowners to be the favored solution to reducing excessive traffic speed. People across the United States are opposing the installation of deflection devices on city streets that damage vehicles, injure vehicle passengers, increase pollution and gas consumption and delay emergency response. In the opinion of many people in communities throughout the United States, these devices are considered as a last resort when all other options have been studied and exhausted. Installing street humps is not a small project nor does it have a small impact. Nothing should be implemented, or even considered, unless there is strong urging from residents along the affected roadway. Even then, there are a number of things that should be evaluated and implemented before installation. 1. Traffic engineering studies of the area need to be done to determine if the path in question is a good candidate for speed humps utilizing the criteria mentioned earlier. These studies include safe sight distance, pedestrian activities, vehicle classification, traffic count, speed studies. Current land use, school routes, "as built" plans, other control devices, and stop sign compliance should also be examined. 2. If the traffic engineering studies show that there is a prevailing problem, the next step should be to enforce existing laws and ordinances regarding speed limits, revising them if necessary. 3. The third strategy is to educate residents on the causes of the speed problem and the potential solutions to it. They should be well informed on the advantages and disadvantages of each possible solution. This can be done in a number of ways including town meetings, flyers, posters, and door to door education. 4. Installation of traffic control devices, including regulatory, warning, and guide signs, in conformance with the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, is the next step. 5. Consider legal liability. Review the current laws and regulations regarding speed humps. Courts have held the installing agency liable for damage and personal injuries resulting from speed humps. 6. If none of the above strategies alleviates the speed problem, then speed humps should be considered. The plan, however, should not be implemented until other alternatives have been explored, all groups affected are informed and/or consulted concerning the matter, and traffic engineering studies have been conducted and conclude that there is a need for speed humps.
Several studies have been published on the subject that are worth reading. We recommend interested readers conduct their own search for more information. |
