City of Blaine Anoka County, Minnesota - File #: TC-07

• File #: TC-07
• Version: 1
• Name: Traffic Concerns 121st W of Sunset
• Type: Traffic Commission
• Status: Agenda Ready
• File created: 7/12/2017
• In control: City Council
• On agenda: 7/12/2017
• Title: TRAFFIC CONCERNS ON 121ST AVENUE WEST OF SUNSET AVENUE
• Sponsors: Jean Keely

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result
7/12/2017	1	Traffic Commission	Forwarded with Recommendation	Pass

Title

TRAFFIC CONCERNS ON 121^ST AVENUE WEST OF SUNSET AVENUE

Background

The Engineering and Police Departments have received complaints of speeding on 121^st Avenue west of Sunset Avenue.  On 121^st Avenue just west of Sunset Avenue and adjacent to the rural residential lots, the speed limit is 55 MPH.  When you travel west, just before Opal Street, you encounter urbanized residential lots where the speed limit drops to 30 MPH.

Staff has collected traffic count and speed data on 121^st Avenue in the urbanized area and rural area since 2009.  The traffic counts in 2007 were 155 vehicles per day and as development has increased in the area, the traffic counts have increased to 568 in 2015.  The 85^th percentile speed has been between 39 to 42 MPH just west of Sunset Avenue.  In 2015, the 85^th percentile speed in front of 4813 121^st Avenue, the first house in the 30 MPH zone, was 37 MPH in the westbound direction and 39 MPH in the eastbound direction.  In February of 2016, the Police Department monitored this area for two afternoons and did not issue any tickets.  In June of 2017, the Police Department set up the speed trailer for a week at 4813 121^st Avenue.  This is part of the neighborhood education program of reminding drivers of the transition to the 30 MPH speed limit.  The 85^th percentile speed in front of this house was 36 MPH.  The Engineering Department will be placing traffic count tubes to verify the speeds and the Police Department will schedule traffic enforcement.

121^st Avenue was extended to Woodland Parkway in 2013.  121^st Avenue from Sunset Avenue to Woodland Parkway is a Municipal State Aid (MSA) route that connects the surrounding residential area to the adjacent County Road system.  With this MSA designation, the City is not allowed to install speed humps, which has been requested by a couple of residents in the 30 MPH area.  One solution to help slow traffic on the roadway would be to install a white edge stripe on both sides of the street and double yellow center line stripes to narrow the drive lanes to eleven feet.  Traffic enforcement will also be utilized to help slow traffic in this area.

Recommendation

By motion, direct staff to mail notices to the neighborhood to invite them to the next Traffic Commission meeting on August 9, 2017, take public comment, and make a recommendation to the City Council.

OR

By motion, make a recommendation directly back to the City Council.