Neighborhood Traffic Manager Program
Introduction
Every year, residents express concern to the Washtenaw County Road Commission over traffic control issues in residential neighborhoods. Typically, these concerns result in a request for stop signs, speed bumps, road closures, children at play signs or other traffic control measures. Experience has shown that traditional responses and unwarranted signs or signals do not work. Often, the only option available to the Road Commission is to recommend increased law enforcement in the area. With the limited number of law enforcement officers in most communities, this solution is short-term at best and many times unavailable. In order to be more responsive, the Road Commission has developed a Neighborhood Traffic Management Program which creates a partnership between residents, the Road Commission and law enforcement.
The purpose of the Neighborhood Traffic Management Program is to increase the Road Commission’s ability to respond to the concerns of residents and provide long-term solutions to residential traffic issues. The Neighborhood Traffic Management Program contains educational and enforcement elements as well as engineering measures. It promotes Road Commission staff working with local residents to find solutions which are appropriate and acceptable to both the Road Commission and the community.
Goals
The goals of the Neighborhood Traffic Management Program are:
- To provide traffic control measures in residential areas which are acceptable to both the Road Commission and the local community.
- To consider requests for residential traffic control measures in an equitable and consistent manner.
- To periodically review the effectiveness of such traffic control measures.
Criteria
To qualify for the Neighborhood Traffic Management Program, the Washtenaw County Board of County Road Commissioners will consider the following criteria:
- Classification of the Road. The Neighborhood Traffic Management Program will only apply to residential subdivision streets which have a prima facie speed limit of 25 mph.
- Neighborhood Support. To qualify for the Neighborhood Traffic Management Program, a minimum of seven (7) residents from different households must petition the Road Commission for a preliminary traffic engineering investigation. In addition, prior to the installation of any physical traffic control devices, a minimum of 75 percent of the property owners affected by the traffic control devices must concur with the installation of the recommended devices by way of a signed petition.
- Traffic Speed. If a primary concern as expressed by the residents is speeding traffic, qualifying roads must have an 85th percentile speed of 35 mph or greater. Traffic speed will not be considered if speeding traffic is not stated as a primary concern.
- Traffic Volume. If a primary concern as expressed by the residents is cut-through traffic, qualifying roads must have traffic volumes at least 25 percent greater than anticipated traffic volumes. Traffic volume will not be considered if cut-through traffic is not stated as a primary concern.
Funding
Funding for physical traffic control devices will be provided through an agreement with the township in which the road is located. The township may require that the affected neighborhood pay part or all of the cost of the improvements. Matching funds provided annually by the Road Commission to the township as part of its Local Road Program may be used for up to 50 percent of each device at the discretion of the township.