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Section Three: Risk Assessment Eugene contains a significant amount ofwildland/urban interface areas in the south hills and southwestern portions of the city. These areas consist of mostly upscale residential development along winding, narrow and steep streets, interspersed within heavily forested areas, all of which contribute to increased response times. In addition, this situation presents a significant fire danger during the dry summer and early fall months. Fortunately, the number of calls for fire response service in these areas remains relatively low. The rural districts, particularly those to the south and west of Eugene, are less densely populated and developed. In general they are hilly and forested and often feature long driveways and narrow access roads. Transportation System and Networks The streets, roads, and highways within the service area are the primary means of getting fire, rescue, and emergency medical resources to incident scenes. The main highways running through the city are 1-5, I-105, Delta Highway, Highway 99 (which includes 6th and 7th Avenues), and Highway 126 (which includes 11 th Avenue). In addition, other main arterials include Belt Line Road, Coburg Road, River Road, Franklin Boulevard, Chambers Street, Jefferson Street, Amazon Parkway, Willamette Street, Roosevelt Boulevard, 13th, 18th, and 29th Avenues. While these transportation routes are usually adequate for the volume of traffic they carry, periods of "rush hour" congestion significantly slow traffic, including emergency response, along these and other routes. Within the rural areas served by Eugene Fire & EMS, limited road networks, terrain contours, bridges unable to bear the weight of standard fire apparatus, as well as long, narrow, and winding private driveways, further impede response performance efforts. Absent or inadequate water supply systems in these areas cause additional fire suppression challenges to responders. While the City openly encourages "connectivity," and Eugene Fire & EMS provides regular input supporting projects that will enhance omni-directional emergency response, several factors that slow or obstruct emergency vehicle response are beyond the department's control. As the city becomes more developed and densely populated, more people and vehicles are vying for space on aging streets, leading to more speeding .and aggressive driving. In an effort to keep neighborhoods safe and "livable," residents are demanding street designs that slow traffic and/or transfer it to other streets. Obviously, any design that slows the flow of normal traffic has a similar impact on emergency response. Eugene Fire & EMS staff members work regularly with City Traffic Engineering and Transportation staffs to develop compromise solutions and find a balance between safe neighborhood streets and adequate emergency vehicle access. However, it is inevitable that the proliferation of new traffic calming devices will result in further increases in emergency response times. Additionally, plans for some major connecting streets have been thwarted by political and environmental concerns. A bridge across the Willamette River connecting the Valley River area