HomeMy WebLinkAbout05 ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 14-70 ESTABLISHING PRIMA FACIE SPEED LIMITS ON CITY STREETSAGENDA REPORT Reeeweldm
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City Manager
Finance Director N/A
MEETING DATE: DECEMBER 16, 2014
TO: JEFFREY C. PARKER, CITY MANAGER
FROM: DOUGLAS S. STACK, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS /CITY ENGINEER
SUBJECT: ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 14 -70 ESTABLISHING PRIMA FACIE SPEED
LIMITS ON CITY STREETS
SUMMARY
Adoption of Resolution No. 14 -70 will establish speed limits on certain streets throughout the
City of Tustin based upon an engineering and traffic survey as required by the California
Vehicle Code.
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council adopt Resolution No. 14 -70 establishing Prima Facie
Speed Limits on certain streets throughout the City of Tustin.
FISCAL IMPACT
Updating signs in accordance with adoption of Resolution No. 14 -70 will cost approximately
$6,500. Adequate funds have been budgeted and appropriated in Engineering Division
Account No. 130 -40 -00 -6625 (Sign Maintenance and Striping).
CORRELATION TO THE STRATEGIC PLAN:
Establishment of speed limits contributes to the fulfillment of the City's Strategic Plan
Goal B: Public Safety and Protection of Assets. Specifically, the project implements or
fosters the implementation of strategy #3, which among other items, is to ensure
continuous maintenance and improvement of traffic control and transportation facilities.
BACKGROUND
Pursuant to the California Vehicle Code (CVC), the City has the ability to establish prima facie
speed limits on City streets on the basis of an engineering and traffic survey. CVC Section
627 indicates that an engineering and traffic survey needs to be conducted in accordance with
methods determined by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and shall
include, among other requirements, consideration of all of the following:
1. Prevailing speeds as determined by traffic engineering measurements;
2. Accident records; and
3. Highway, traffic, and roadside conditions not readily apparent to the driver.
Speed limit changes are due to changes in the public's driving characteristics, accident history
of the segment, and conditions not readily apparent to drivers. Standard engineering
Resolution No. 14 -70 Establishing Prima Facie Speed Limits on City Streets
December 16, 2014
Page 2
procedures and methodologies consistent with CVC requirements have been used to conduct
the current engineering and traffic survey. Adoption of Resolution No. 14 -70 establishing
speed limits based on this survey will allow continued use of radar or other electronic means
for enforcement of posted speed limits by the Tustin Police Department.
DISCUSSION
The most recent citywide speed limits were established by Resolution No. 10 -01 which was
adopted by the City Council on January 19, 2010. The CVC requires that speed limits on City
streets be justified by an engineering and traffic survey conducted within five -year periods for
police enforcement involving the use of radar or other electronic devices.
The Public Works Department/Engineering Division, with input from the Tustin Police
Department, has completed the "2015 Engineering and Traffic Survey" (attached) for the City
of Tustin and used it as the basis for establishing speed limits for 138 street segments
throughout the City. Resolution No. 14 -70 (attached) recommends speed limits for all of the
surveyed streets. Table 1 (attached) indicates recommended speed limit increases for 11
segments and Table 2 (attached) recommends speed limit reductions on 16 segments.
Speed limit increases could have been recommended on 12 other street segments based
upon the speed surveys alone. However, conditions not readily apparent to motorists have
been noted on these street segments as justification to retain the present posted speeds.
Such conditions include accident rates, pedestrian /bicycle activity, design speeds, adjacent
land uses, and continuity with speed limits posted on adjacent street segments. For the same
reason the recommended speed on Main Street between Williams Street and Myrtle Avenue
was only raised 5 mph (to 35 mph) rather than 10 mph as would normally have been required.
Adjacent jurisdictions concur with the recommended speed limits on streets of shared interest.
With implementation of the speed limits recommended in Resolution No. 14 -70, the Public
Works Department and Police Department are confident that the enforcement of the posted
speed limits by radar, or other electronic means, will be upheld in the courts, as they have
been with the 2010 Engineering and Traffic Survey.
Stack
Public Works /City Engineer
Attachment 1:
Table 1- Recommended Speed Limit Increases
Attachment 2:
Table 2- Recommended Speed Limit Decreases
Attachment &
Speed Limit Map
Attachment 4:
Resolution No. 14 -70
Attachment 5:
2015 Engineering and Traffic Survey
S: \City Council Items\2014 Council Items \I2 -16- 2014 \Establishing Speed Limits \Establishing prima facia speed limits Reso 14 -70 SC.doc