Encinitas panel OKs Leucadia Boulevard improvements
By: ADAM KAYE - Staff Writer | ∞
ENCINITAS ---- The Encinitas Planning Commission voted 5-0 Thursday to approve the first phase of Leucadia Boulevard improvements that call for sidewalks, bike lanes, landscaping three roundabouts.
During more than an hour of public testimony, some speakers said the roundabouts, to be built at Hermes and Hymettus avenues, would impede traffic flow and not improve it.
A city fire marshal told commissioners that roundabouts ---- raised, circular islands in the middle of an intersection ---- would delay the response times of emergency vehicles. He said he worried about a proliferation of the devices in Encinitas, where the city's first roundabout was built this year on Santa Fe Drive.
Blair Knoll, a city engineer, told commissioners that pedestrian and vehicular safety were driving the project, for which $1.2 million has been budgeted to complete the first phase.
In addition to roundabouts, landscaped medians appear on plans.
The medians, as well as landscaped, meandering walkways, would provide safe havens for pedestrians who today must cross a boulevard that is up to 50 feet wide, Knoll said.
The roundabouts also are a safe way to control intersections because they provide fewer points at which accidents could occur, he said.
Some speakers and fire Marshal David Moore flat-out disagreed.
Moore said a city traffic consultant told him there are more accidents at roundabouts, but fewer serious accidents, because the devices force drivers to slow down.
Likewise, roundabouts and medians alike would hinder the responses of fire trucks to emergency scenes. Roundabouts in Portland, Ore., are being removed for that reason, he said.
"It will slow us 24 hours a day," Moore said of the Encinitas roundabout plan.
Beyond that, some speakers said, local motorists just don't understand how to navigate them.
Resident Frank Scarborough said he avoids Santa Fe Drive because of the roundabout and, as a result, does some of his shopping in Carlsbad.
"The big problem I see is when you're putting three of them in a four-tenths of a mile area" on Leucadia Boulevard, Scarborough said.
A greater number of speakers told the commission that roundabouts would slow traffic on the boulevard, and that was a good thing.
"I have driven roundabouts in Tijuana, Boston and Rome, and I don't think there are worse drivers in the world," said Kathleen Lees of Urania Avenue. "If they can figure it out, we should be able to."
Other speakers who supported roundabouts said they would reduce the time they spend waiting for a break in speeding traffic to turn left from side streets and driveways onto the boulevard.
In addition to the Hermes and Hymettus roundabouts, the first phase of the Leucadia job would include curbs, gutters, sidewalks, streetlights and bike lanes on both sides of the boulevard from Vulcan to Hermes; the construction of left-turn lanes on northbound and southbound Vulcan Avenue; and an asphalt pathway on the north side of Leucadia Boulevard from Hermes to Interstate 5.
The pathway would be replaced with concrete sidewalks during a second phase of construction.
The second phase also would add a third roundabout at Hygeia, which today has a four-way stop sign. It also would bring sidewalks to both sides of the boulevard all the way to the freeway and would include landscaping on the sides and on a median for the busy road.
After the meeting, Knoll said he expects construction to begin this spring and last about eight months.
Contact staff writer Adam Kaye at (760) 943-2312 or akaye@nctimes.com.
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This is a great for Encinitas wrote on Dec 22, 2006 7:39 AM:Some one needs to wake up the fire marshal. It’s all about balance. Response time is only half the equation. The speeding hazardous cars are 24 hours a day as well. The residents, and hopefully fire department, want safer streets so their kids don't get smeared on their way to school and the beach. The safer roads the less accidents and need for emergency response calls.
Traffic Engineer wrote on Dec 22, 2006 7:42 AM:Unfortunately, wide open roads promote speeding and accidents. I’m glad to see that the City is promoting safer streets. Some one needs to explain to Dave the fire marshall that he should be promoting the design of safer streets. People do not want to be hurt or killed 24 hours a day everyday of the year. Accident prevention is as or more important than accident response.
Bogus wrote on Dec 22, 2006 4:23 PM:This will not be traffic calming. The "golf club set," wants to practically privatize Leucadia Blvd. Three roundabouts in a row is ridiculous. We need to study the one at Santa Fe longer, before we put in another one, anywhere. And we should definitely do one at at time, not two. Remember the saying, measure twice, cut once. That applies to public works projects, too. The back up caused by three will be so bad that the street will be used mainly by "meandering pedestrians." First the City opened up Leucadia Blvd, through its public golf course, at which many residents cannot afford to tee off. Now they want us to look like a gated community down Leucadia Blvd. This is for status and aesthetics, not for traffic calming. We could still have medians, and sidewalks, without forcing three roundabouts on us. Listen to the fire marshal; he is a safety expert. This will be appealed to the Coastal Commission, if it passes Council.
Learn about roundabouts wrote on Dec 23, 2006 9:54 AM:Traffic control is warranted and needed at Hermes and Hymettus. Roundabouts will not cause any reduction in travel time through this segment of road, while adding two more 4 way stops along the stretch would increase gridlock. Ask the fire marshal how much delay does a 4 way stop have on emergency responses. Bogus is clueless and needs to learn more on the subject and not just babble talk. Sante Fe Avenue is a terrific project which is loved by all. Leucadia wants a similar wonderful project. The Coastal commission will love the project to increase safe pedestrian and vehicular traffic to the Coast.
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