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Home My WebLink About03/07/1989, C-6 - TRAFFIC MONITORING STATUS REPORT MEETING DATE: ��i�H��IIIII��p� �MIIaIII cityOf San LUIS OBIS � March 7, 1989 a ,,'=Coo COUNCIL A EN®A REPORT ITEM NUMBER: FROM: David F. Romero Z�AWayne A. Peterson Prepared by: Barbara Lynch..SS. Public Works Director City Engineer _ Engineering Assistant/Traffic SUBJECT: Traffic Monitoring Status Report CAO RECOMMENDATION: By Motion, Receive and File. Direct Staff to Continue to Provide Yearly Updates and Keep Council Informed of Deteriorating Levels of Service. BACKGROUND: With the 1982 Circulation Element, the- Council adopted a work program priority list. One item on that list was to establish a procedure for monitoring traffic. The intent of the traffic monitoring program is to keep Council informed of traffic conditions on the city's major streets, using level of service (LOS) as a guide. Level of service is the relationship between the existing volume of traffic and the maximum amount the street can carry (refer to Attachment 1 ). The maximum amount is determined using the number of lanes and adjusting to account for restrictions such as on-street parking or nearby controlled intersections. The monitoring program ties directly into the criteria for determining the need for major street improvements. This strategy is set out in Appendix B of the 1982 Circulation Element and summarized below. Step 1 is to make minor changes, such as restriping to add more lanes, to improve flow, and make better use of the existing street, thereby delaying the need for major improvements. Step 2 is to notify the City Council when the level of service reaches LOS C during the peak hour. Step 3 is to notify the City Council when the level of service is expected to reach LOS D in the next 4 to 6 years for all of the eight busiest hours of the day. In this way the Council is aware of growing traffic demand as it occurs, prior to major congestion problems. Council can take whatever steps it deems most appropriate to handle the problems as they become apparent. The engineering division performs traffic vehicle counts on a regular basis. Using past counts and those done recently to determine the rate of increase, we have estimated the time frame in which traffic: volumes will reach levels where road changes will need to be considered to accommodate growing traffic demands. C.P city of san Luis osispo -% COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Traffic Monitoring Status Report Meeting of March 7, 1989 Page Two. RESULTS OF STUDY: The table (Attachment 2) identifies nine major streets and the current status of traffic volumes on these streets. Both the peak hour volumes and the volume for the eighth highest hour are shown to indicate peak and off-peak traffic characteristics. The eighth highest hour was decided on during the development of the circulation element as a level which would insure the street was being fully utilized before widening was considered. It is not state or federal standard. The peak hour volume represents the highest hourly volume that occurs during the day. The rate at which the vehicles pass a given point may vary within that hour. For example, morning peak may be between 7:30 and 8:30 AM but the largest percentage of those vehicles may arrive between 7:45 and 8:00 AM. This means that while a street may be able to carry the necessary number of vehicles per hour there will be times within that hour when the street will seem overly congested. These volumes also do not reflect the extremes in traffic such as holiday or Poly Royal traffic. The far right column indicates the year when the eighth highest hourly volume is projected to reach LOS D. At that time, LOS D will be reached during all of the eight busiest hours of the day. This is used for Step 3 of the strategy for determining the need for major changes to the streets. i Of the nine streets being monitored, Broad north of Orcutt, Chorro south of Lincoln and Monterey west of California appear to have reached LOS C during the peak hour. Broad north of Orcutt is the only street projected to reach LOS D within 6 years. This is part of the State Highway system and capacity is constrained by the signal at Orcutt. On a short term scale, the engineering division is planning an improvement to the Orcutt Road leg of the intersection by adding an additional left turn lane. This should help Broad Street by reducing the time necessary to accommodate Orcutt Road traffic. The State's road is 80-feet wide and could be reconfigured to add additional lanes when they are needed. Projections indicate traffic volumes on the major streets are increasing at the average compound rate of 3.40 percent per year. This will result in these streets reaching capacity, during the eight peak hours, in the next 5 to 35 years. I I�u�� ►Ilp�p ��lll► city of san 1L.;6 owpo Milli% COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Traffic Monitoring Status Report Meeting of March 7, 1989 Page Three. CONSEQUENCES OF NOT TAKING THE RECOMMENDED ACTION: Staff will no longer prepare yearly updates on traffic volumes. RECOMMENDED ACTION• Receive and file. Direct staff to continue to provide yearly updates and keep Council informed of deteriorating levels of service. bl3/monitoring by I _ r TABLt 4«STRUT SUVWX Lavers. r LEVEL VOLUME TO OF CAPACITY SERVICE DESCRIPTION RATIO A Free flow (relativelv). If signalized, conditions are 0.00 to such that no approach phase is fully utilized by traffic 0.60 L�Jj and no vehicle waits through more than one red indication. Very slight or no delay. B Stable flow. If signalized, an occasional approach phase 0.61 to is fully utilized; vehicle platoons are formed. This 0.70 level is suitable operation for rural design purposes. Slight delay. C Stable flow or operation. If signalized, drivers 0.71 to occasionally may have to wait through more than one red 0.80 indication. This level is suitable operation for urban design purposes. Acceptable delay. D Approaching unstable flow or operation; queues develop, 0.81 to but are quickly cleared. Tolorable delay. 0.90 G E Unstable flow or operation; the intersection has reached 0.91 to ultimate capacity; this condition is not uncommon in peak 1.00 hours. Congestion and intolerable delay. F Forced flow or operation. Intersection operates below over capacity. Jammed. 1.00 C- Source: Righwav Capacity Manual, RRB Special Report 87 B2 CAPACITY PROJECTIONS JANUARY `89 1 TRAFFIC MONITORING PROGRAM TRAFFIC 1 DATE LEVEL PROJECTED 1 1 STREET NAME ! SECTIDN 1 VOLUME ! COUNT ! OF !YEAR TO REACH! ! ! 1 (VPH) ! TAKEN ! SERVICE ! LOS D 1 ! ! ! PEAK 8TH !�—w1 PEAK/8TH 1 BTH HIGHEST ! ! ! ! HIGHEST ! ! HIGHEST! ! ! FOOTHILL ! W/O SANTA R05A ! 1638 1245 ! 2 / 1987 1 B I A ! 2006 ! ! BROAD ! N/0 ORCUTT ! 2254 1639 ! 7 1 1987 ! C / A 1 1995 ! ! BROAD ! MID PISMO ! 886 690 111. 1 1988 ! A / A ! 2019 ! ! MADONNA ! W/0 101 ! 2713 2245 ! 9 / 1989 1 A I A 1 2013 ! ! CHORRO 1 SID LINCOLN 1 1296 391 ! 1 / 1989 1 C / A 1 2032 ! ! CALIFORNIA ! SIO FOOTHILL ! 1328 989 ! 5 1 1987 1 B / A ! 1998 ! ! CALIFORNIA ! 810 MONTEREY 1 891 693 !10 / 1988 1 A / A 1 2013 ! ! MONTEREY 1 W/O CALIFORNIA 1 1250 979 1 7 1 1987 1 C / A 1 2023 1 ! SANTA BARBARA ! SID OSOS 1 1036 771 ! 8 / 1988 ! A / A 1 2017 ! ! JOHNSON ! 510 PISMO 1 1143 922 1 9 1.1988 1 B / A ! 2006 ! ! LOS OMS VALLEY 1 W/O HIGUERA 1 1026 737 1 3 / 1988 1 A / A ! 2018} ! 1 ! ! 1 ! 1 AS WIDENED ! ! HISUERA 1 9/0 SOUTH 1 2334 1896 1 1 / 1988 1 B / A 1 2044 1 ! HIGUERA ! MID SOUTH 1 1483 1208 ! 1 1 1988 ! A / A 1 2053 ! Projection is based on the average grorth rate of the oajor streets due.to insufficient historical data.