01/26/1987 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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e Mr. Miller wondered if a diverter could be installed now, taken out in June when construction on 6th Avenue begins, and then installed again in September when construction on 6th Avenue is finished. Public Works Director Christine Andersen said drivers become confused when traffic patterns change. Routes need to be established and changes should not be made for short periods. She said the traffic counts on 5th Avenue will be high this summer during construction but even a daily count of 4,200 is not a large percentage of the 14,00 to 16,000 daily count for 6th and 7th avenues. She said the 5th Avenue traffic count would be higher if the City encouraged people to use 5th Avenue. She said the staff can consider mitigating efforts after 6th Avenue is widened and before the Chambers Connectors is completed. Answering questions from Ms. Bascom, Mr. Duke said Lane County officials indicate that the money in the Chambers Connector project will be available if the City decides to change the design of the woonerf at 5th Avenue in the project. He said the Chambers Connector and the widening of 6th and 7th avenues need to be completed before the effects of the test diverter at the 5th and Almaden can be analyzed. Replying to questions from Ms. Ehrman, Mr. Duke said truck drivers are encouraged to use 6th and 7th avenues and there are NO THROUGH TRUCKS signs on 11th Avenue from Franklin Boulevard to Garfield Street. The City relies mainly on voluntary compliance with the signs. Mr. Holmer said STOP signs at Almaden and Polk streets and a slower traffic light at Blair Street would discourage through traffic. Mr. Duke responded that a STOP sign exists at Polk Street and the City could consider the other suggestions. e Ms. Ehrman said the councilors must balance the needs of the residential and commercial communities. She said she favors the staff recommendation but she would like a STOP sign installed at Almaden now. Ms. Wooten said she has assisted the businesses that have had difficulty because of the reconstruction of 6th and 7th avenues and she knows the degradation suffered by the 5th Avenue residential neighborhood. She said a traffic count of 4,200 is extremely high and divides a community. She said investments in the residential neighborhood are decreasing. She said she would like another survey conducted that includes residents between Polk and Blair. She would also like to know if the traffic signal at Blair Boulevard can be changed. Ms. Wooten said she supports installation of a temporary diverter now on 5th Avenue because access to businesses can be provided on other streets. She said the summer construction period is when residents need help. They should not bear the burden of widening 6th and 7th avenues. She said the diverter could be removed after the summer construction period until the Chambers Connector is completed. She also favors NO THROUGH TRUCKS signs in the area. Ms. Bascom said the traffic issue is very important to residents and they have diligently sought a solution. She said maintaining 5th and 8th avenues as residential streets was important to the Spillover Study Task Team and she e MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 26, 1987 Page 6