Transportation Advisory Board

400 S. Eagle Street City of Naperville Naperville, IL 60540 Meeting Minutes Transportation Advisory Board Thursday, March 5, 2020 7:00 PM Council Chambers A. CALL TO ORDER: B. ROLL CALL: Present: Brown, Fischer, Gustin, Howenstine, Melaniphy Absent: Meyer, Overholt, Seeberg C. PUBLIC FORUM: D. REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: 1. Approve the minutes of the December 5, 2019 Transportation Advisory Board meeting A motion was made by Gustin, seconded by Fischer to approve the minutes of the December 5, 2019 Transportation Advisory Board meeting. Aye: 5 - Brown, Fischer, Gustin, Howenstine, Melaniphy Nay: 0 2. Provide input on city wide traffic calming measures Prousa made a presentation discussing traffic calming principles, measures being considered for the city-wide traffic calming toolkit, measures that are not recommended, and the speed and volume thresholds for implementing traffic calming. TAB input is being requested at this meeting, with no formal action. The toolkit document will be presented at a future meeting for TAB action. Melaniphy thanked Prousa for an informative presentation and invited TAB members to ask questions and share their input. Howenstine suggested providing explanations to clarify technical terms, such as chicane and bollards. Gustin asked what we are trying to do with the toolkit. He thought the topic for the meeting was the Westside traffic study. Prousa responded that the City does not currently have a traffic calming toolkit that guides this type of work city-wide. The toolkit is being presented first to define the types of measures and thresholds that could be applied throughout the City. A public meeting for the Westside traffic study will be held on April 9th from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Municipal Center. The data and recommendations will be shared with the residents during this meeting. The recommendations will come to TAB after that meeting. Gustin doesn’t understand why we would limit traffic calming to only certain measures and stated all options should be included in the toolkit. He noted that he is confused on how certain measures will be City of Naperville Page 1 Printed on 9/14/2020 Transportation Advisory Board Meeting Minutes March 5, 2020 implemented. Gustin asked if roundabouts are excluded. Prousa responded that traffic circles are excluded. The City had a program to implement traffic circles in the past and it was deemed to not be successful. Roundabouts would be considered through an engineering process for a larger-scale project. Gustin reiterated that he thought the meeting topic was the Westside study and asked if the study would come to TAB after the public meeting. Prousa responded yes. Gustin asked if the study will be made available to the public and TAB. Prousa responded that it will be available on the City website and at the public meeting. Gustin asked that the TAB members be emailed a link to the study page on the City website. Fischer likes that measures are divided into levels and that Level 1 and 2 measures focus on striping and signage, which are cheaper and effective ways to deal with a lot of issues. He likes that vertical measures are excluded because they are not effective; drivers only slow down right at the device and go faster before and after. He is glad to see traffic circles are not included. He gets nervous that people are confused at them. Fischer cautions TED from implementing any Level 3 and 4 measures. They are expensive and, if they don’t work, are hard to remove. Level 3 and 4 measures should be used sparingly. Fischer asked how the toolkit will be applied to typical resident traffic requests. Prousa responded that staff follows a data-driven approach to evaluating concerns. Appropriate data would be collected and, if it meets the thresholds, staff would apply a Level 1 or 2 measure. After those are implemented, a follow-up study will be conducted. Fischer noted he has seen some of the measures in action, such as the temporary driver feedback signs and enforcement. He likes that those are mobile and can be moved around to where they are needed. Public Comment: Marilyn Schweitzer likes the concept of having a toolkit. It will help residents from asking staff for solutions that can’t be implemented She hopes the toolkit will be made available on the City website along with the criteria for implementing. If the City is doing 40-50 studies a year, that data should be shared too. It would help residents know if their requests are reasonable or not. The most important thing is having a commitment to implement the tools. Zone 11 recommendations have not been fully implemented. She is waiting on the status and would like to know if they are in the queue and at what stage. Gustin stated he doesn’t think we need a toolkit that excludes certain items and asked what Ms. Schweitzer thinks about not including all tools. Ms. Schweitzer responded that residents make their own proposals for measures and that having a toolkit will provide a standard that will help residents and staff focus on what can be accomplished. Fischer asked staff if vertical measures are excluded because Police, Fire and Public Works don’t support. He stated it is helpful to exclude them to help residents understand what can and can’t be implemented. Melaniphy noted it is important to recognize that climate impacts what can be implemented. For example, plowing is not a concern for measures implemented in southern states. Jennifer Taylor thought the Westside study was on the agenda. Ms. Taylor lives at 309 Spring Street at the edge of downtown and grew up in Brook Crossing at the corner of 95th and Plainfield-Naperville. The traffic issues and the way to handle traffic issues are very different from north and south Naperville. The toolkit is limiting the options so that once the April 9th meeting approaches, residents will be told that certain measures can’t be done. The Level 1 and 2 options are a joke because they already exist in her area and don’t help. Level 3 and 4 will only work at Washington and Spring and the streets in the area are not wide enough to implement them. Measures should not be taken out of the toolkit. Ms. Taylor is concerned that the 85th percentile speed is used as a measurement. Howenstine asked Ms. Taylor to clarify which measures she feels work. City of Naperville Page 2 Printed on 9/14/2020 Transportation Advisory Board Meeting Minutes March 5, 2020 Ms. Taylor stated that speed bumps and bulb-outs worked where she lived in Chicago. Gustin urged staff to not take options out of the toolkit and will not vote yes to a toolkit that takes options out. Kathy Benson is disappointed because she did not see a lot of things that are new or that could be deployed in our community. It would be helpful to know where some of these measures would be deployed. It would also help if the difference between traffic calming and engineering work is clarified. She asked how one-way streets, stop sign placement, and pavement striping fit with the toolkit. With regards to the Westside study, Level 1 and 2 measures are already present in the Westside neighborhood. Asked if only the toolkit measures are being looked at for this area or if engineering measures being considered. Ms. Benson stated that she finds the River Road traffic circles to be useful except that only two of the three have all-way stops. She would not eliminate vertical deflections but would include a description of the considerations that would go into their deployment. Melaniphy asked if staff wished to respond to any of the technical questions raised. Hynes responded to clarify the terms roundabout and traffic circle. A traffic circle, like those located on River Road, is a traffic calming measure. A roundabout is a traffic control device. It has different geometry than a traffic circle and requires a significant amount of right-of-way. There is one at 103rd and Honey Locust. Prousa added that traffic circles are not recommended for the toolkit because the ones previously installed were found to be not effective and caused maintenance issues. A roundabout is not included in the toolkit because it is a traffic control measure, not a traffic calming measure. One could be constructed in Naperville, but it would be the result of an engineering study. Howenstine stated then when discussing closing streets or changing streets to be one-way, that would be traffic diversion, not traffic calming. Impact studies should be completed before this type of change is approved. Beth Shaffer-McCarthy asked what measures have been effective in calming traffic in the neighborhood where the traffic circles are located along River Road since those devices have not been effective. Prousa responded that the temporary driver feedback signs are effective and well received by the residents. Ms. Shaffer-McCarthy stated that resident compliments don’t rise to the level of a data-driven approach for determining if a measure is effective. Prousa responded that the toolkit prescribes an evaluation following implementation of a traffic calming measure to obtain data to determine effectiveness. Ms. Shaffer-McCarthy stated the Westside area has a lot of Level 1 measures and they have not changed driver behaviors. When looking at the proposed toolkit, many measures are already in place in her neighborhood and not working and others can’t be implemented on the roadways. The toolkit doesn’t have a tool to address her concerns. Prousa responded that the recommended toolkit measures for the Westside neighborhood will be based on the data collected for the study. Ms. Shaffer-McCarthy is disappointed that vertical measures are not included. Melaniphy thanked the residents for participating in the meeting and noted that a vote would not take place during the meeting. The toolkit will be brought back to TAB at a future meeting. Gustin suggested that the toolkit discussion be tabled until the Westside study is completed. Howenstine stated she is not in favor of tabling anything. Recommended noting that City of Naperville Page 3 Printed on 9/14/2020 Transportation Advisory Board Meeting Minutes March 5, 2020 some of the measures are extraordinary and require additional coordination. Fischer asked when the toolkit will come back to TAB for approval. Prousa responded that it will be May or June. The Westside recommendations will be released before the toolkit comes back to TAB. E. OLD BUSINESS: Gustin asked for clarification on why a segment along Book Road was included in the new sidewalk program when it is not incorporated. Hynes responded that the portion of Book Road is under the City’s jurisdiction because one side is incorporated. When a property annexes, it is to the far side of the right-of-way, bringing it into the City’s jurisdiction. Gustin thanked Hynes for providing information on semi-truck parking and commended the Police Department for their attention to this, but there are still semi-trucks on Fairway on a regular basis. This seems to be a safety issue. Two things bother him about the trucks: they are unsightly and not up to Naperville brand and it is an immense waste of Police resources to repeatedly ticket the trucks overnight. Gustin can’t believe that there isn’t an overarching regulation against semi-trucks parking on neighborhood streets and believes code section 11-3.1 indicates semis can only stop and park if they are delivering or conducting business, otherwise they must be on a truck route. In the case of Fairway, they are not actually making deliveries; this is where they are in violation. Gustin would like City Attorney DiSanto to review this to confirm that this will allow enforcement outside of the overnight parking regulations. Louden responded that she will discuss with the City Attorney. Gustin asked about reports on the commuter lots, stated that City Council has been discussing the occupancy of the lots and noted that the new lot at the old Public Works building has been full. Louden confirmed that daily fee spaces are consistently fully occupied, and that improving occupancy of the permit spaces is an ongoing challenge. Louden will follow-up to provide information on a work plan that City Council approved in June 2019. Staff has been aggressively cleaning up the system and will be looking at how to better manage the commuter parking supply. Gustin noted that the Route 59 station needs to be cleaned-up again and noted Aurora’s side is much cleaner. Louden responded that the City of Aurora is responsible for maintenance on both sides of the Route 59 station. Naperville and Aurora need to enter into a new agreement about maintenance and will incorporate standards of care. Fischer asked if TAB will receive a commuter parking quarterly memo in an upcoming agenda. Louden confirmed that these would be shared. F. NEW BUSINESS: G. ADJOURNMENT: A motion was made by Gustin, seconded by Brown, to adjourn the meeting at 8:36 p.m. The motion carried by a unanimous vote. City of Naperville Page 4 Printed on 9/14/2020