Millwood council orders more study of traffic speeds
Amid conflicting comments from Millwood residents regarding alleged traffic problems, the Millwood City Council unanimously approved seeking additional traffic data on Fowler, Empire and Butler roads Monday night at the regular City Council meeting.
“Our streets are so narrow,” Millwood resident Richard Gardner said. “If a little child or dog comes out on the street, at 25 mph you hardly have any time to stop.”
“Anywhere there are stop signs. If people are going to run them, they’re going to run them,” resident Jennifer Ferguson said. “Everybody probably has the same problems.”
The council directed engineering firm Welch Comer to study the roads in question this spring by approving an independent traffic study. Work began in July after contract approval.
The council’s action Monday night came after Welch Comer presented results from the study, which analyzed traffic data collected from Spokane County and Washington State Department of Transportation last year.
Welch Comer project manager Matt Gillis reported that the county’s data shows 85 percent of drivers drove at an average speed of 31 mph on Empire Avenue and an average 27 mph on Fowler Road. The speed limit on both roads is 25 mph.
Mike Ellis, who lives on Fowler road, disputed the results. He claimed the placement of the sensor equipment used to gather the data was too close to Trent where people are entering or exiting the road, making the data inaccurate.
Gillis’ presentation also included discussing alternative methods of slowing and reducing traffic, and cost estimates for all alternate methods.
In addition to outlining enforcement/education options, Gillis presented four permanent road obstructions to slow and reduce traffic. These included speed humps, chicane, traffic circle and road closure. A chicane is an artificial turn in the roadway that forces drivers to slow.
Gillis noted that other area communities commit to a permanent solution when the majority of cars traveling the road are exceeding the speed limit by 10 mph.
“At what point does a city do something about the speeding issue?” Gillis asked the council. “What do the numbers tell us? Is 31 mph a problem enough to do something about?
Based on the data, Gillis recommended the city begin with less-expensive options: upgrade the current speed limit signs to a higher visibility, add targeted police patrols, and use a portable radar sign. He estimated the cost of a base model portable radar sign at $5,000.
After Gillis’ recommendations, Councilman Kevin Freeman echoed Ellis’ concern of inaccurate data and recommended gathering additional traffic numbers during September.
“Construction is over, school’s back in, let’s verify those numbers,” Freeman said.
Mayor Dan Mork summarized the council’s intended action. “We’ll do the data collection again, suspend the patrols until after we look at the information, and in the meantime … check signage in all areas we patrol.”
In other city news, the council awarded the 30-foot gazebo construction project to the lowest bidder Leone & Keeble Inc., with the bid of $39,100. Leone was one of seven firms considered.
City maintenance supervisor Cleve McCoul estimates construction beginning this month with project completion by mid-November. The city plans to build the gazebo at the east end of Millwood Park.
The council also approved an ordinance authorizing council members to receive financial compensation for all meetings they attend. Prior to this ordinance, the council was limited to receiving payment for only two meetings per month. Councilman Kevin Freeman presented the idea to the council last month, and said the base pay should remain the same, just compensated for the extra time worked. The council members currently receive $60 per meeting.