Update - final outcome

Traffic calming plan was defeated (email below received from the city in January 2009 ) - interestingly, within the BrykerWoods neighborhood 67% voted in favor of the plan while 33% voted to oppose to the plan. Truly unfortunate that a well known and documented traffic problem/hazard will continue to exist in our neighborhood. See response below to the city of Austin. Explanation of the traffic calming plan, outcome and the city process may be found at the dedicated neighborhood "Traffic Calming" website and further questions may be directed to alan.hughes@ci.austin.tx.us at the city of Austin Traffic Engineering Division.

Dear Working Group Members:

I am sending out the official results of the voting process for the traffic calming plan developed for the Brykerwoods / Pemberton Heights Neighborhood.

The ballots have been counted, and the results are:

Yes = 314 (58%)
No = 232 (42%)

The traffic calming guidelines say that of the ballots received by the City, at least 60% have to be in favor of implementing the plan in order for the plan to be implemented. Since the minimum 60% approval rating was not obtained, the traffic calming plan will not be implemented.

I would like to thank all of you for participating in the Traffic Calming Process.

Alan C. Hughes, P.E.
Supervising Engineer
Traffic Engineering Division
Transportation Department
City of Austin, Texas

Response to the city regarding the defeat of the Neighborhood Traffic Calming Proposal:

Austin Mayor and City Council Members,
 
As you probably know, the Pemberton Heights/BrykerWoods neighborhood was a candidate last year for a city traffic calming initiative – the neighborhood was at the top of the list of central Austin neighborhoods with traffic problems as quantified by the city.  If you have not heard already, the reasonable/modest traffic calming plan was voted down (58% for, 42% against) because the super majority requisite vote was not satisfied.
 
Needless to say, parts of the neighborhood hammered most by MOPAC cut-through traffic are extremely disappointed. The traffic problems that the Pemberton and BrykerWoods neighborhoods have are well known and documented.  While we do appreciate and follow the engineering logic of including the entire Windsor Road planning area, extending the official traffic calming vote to those largely if not completely unaffected by the proposed traffic calming plan does not seem entirely appropriate or fair.  In many ways equivalent to asking business owners to vote on mandatory ADA access requirements –  most likely will not. While not an issue of human rights, traffic calming is an issue of neighborhood safety.

We are not entirely certain as to what the answer is, however we do feel that the city should help address a well known and documented neighborhood safety problem. Our neighborhoods are not requesting the closure of the MOPAC ramps (source of the cut-through traffic), all we ask is for help controlling the speeding traffic. The streets in Pemberton and BrykerWoods like many in central Austin are narrow and lack sidewalks. It does not seem fitting that this hazardous situation will continue to exist because 42% of the Windsor Road planning area traffic calming survey respondents voted down the traffic calming proposal. We ask that you consider what can be done to help remedy a well known and documented traffic problem in a central city neighborhood.
 

BWNA Endorses Proposed Traffic Calming Project

Sometime in December 2008, a ballot from the city will arrive in your mailbox, asking you to vote for or against the neighborhood’s traffic calming plan. Your Bryker Woods Neighborhood Association Board urges you to vote for this plan. We need traffic calming because too many cars speed through our neighborhood. By the city’s own measurements, 12,000 cars/day traverse Northwood between Jefferson and MoPac and 8000/day traverse 29th Street at Lamar. By far most of this is cut-through traffic from MoPac. After entering the neighborhood, traffic takes 29th Street (4700 cars/day), Northwood (4000), Harris (2800), and Jefferson (7500 at Mole, 3800 at 32nd Street). Most concerning, a substantial number of those cars drive too fast. When an excessive number of cars speed through a residential neighborhood, everyone suffers. People wait for minutes to back out of their driveways. Cars parked on the street have their side-view mirrors knocked off. Neighborhood residents, dog owners, and families with children in strollers are afraid to walk on their streets. Cyclists, both children and adults, are all put at risk. Most of us live in this wonderful neighborhood because of its high quality of life. Heavy, speeding traffic makes Bryker Woods a less attractive place to live.

A great deal of careful listening and thought went into the traffic calming plan. A working group of your neighbors listened carefully to as many of you as possible about their traffic concerns in many forums. They worked diligently with the city for seven months to consider every available traffic calming option. Some options, while attractive at first glance, did not pan out, e.g. asking APD to hand out more speeding tickets; hiring offduty policemen to enforce the speed limit; installing stop signs at every intersection; installing traffic circles; closing the Mo-Pac exit; blocking off streets; and installing speed cameras. The working group was also sensitive to those who sympathize with the residents on high-traffic streets but do not want traffic diverted onto their streets and do not want an excessive quantity of traffic measures spread throughout the neighborhood. The solution selected was the modest implementation of speed cushions and NOT speed humps such as those on Jefferson. This is an extremely important distinction as drivers are MUCH more tolerant of speed cushions and thus far less likely to seek routes to avoid them.  And should any unforeseen problems arise following the installation of speed cushions, the city will modify the implementation of the plan to alleviate any problems created.  

’s volume AND the plan takes appropriate measures to avoid diverting traffic on to neighboring streets. The plan uses speed cushions in areas of greatest need and NOT speed humps like those currently on Jefferson. And most importantly - speed cushions will not impede emergency vehicles. The city’s Fire and EMS departments both have approved the plan. Your vote matters. Each residence in the neighborhood will receive exactly one ballot from the city via US mail. For the ballot to pass, 60% of those who return their ballots must vote in favor of the plan. If you don’t return your ballot, your vote will not count. If you are interested in more details including a map of the proposed plan, please see the project website at http://brykerwoods.typepad.com/TrafficCalmingProject/

The quality of life within the Bryker Woods neighborhood continues to erode each year because of excessive traffic volume and speed. Our neighborhood streets are narrow and most lack side walks. The BWNA is currently working with the City of Austin and TxDOT to help control and improve the existing traffic problems. See article below on how you can help. The installation of stop signs at the Westover/ Northwood MoPAC interchange is the most recent effort to help improve safety at one of the most dangerous neighborhood intersections. Below is correspondence with a well published University of Texas civil engineering professor regarding the new "all way" stop signs.

Dear Professor Kockelman,

You present some very good observations and arguments. Yes the “all-way” stop signs are inconvenient. Furthermore, these signs introduce some new complexities (and some would argue hazards) to the Westover/Northwood-MoPac interchange. The stop signs however do SLOW a good portion of the traffic which is good for cyclists and pedestrians making use of the underpass. It has also been noted by several residents west of MoPAc that the stop signs actually help them make a left turn onto Westover when approaching from the northbound exit ramp.

Please note that BrykerWoods (east of MoPAC) still has a very serious problem with traffic making use of the curved ramps to exit and enter MoPAC. The new stop signs do nothing to DECREASE THE SPEED of the exit ramp (and entrance ramp) traffic dumped into the BrykerWoods neighborhood. These ramps literally slingshot traffic at high rates of speed into & out of the neighborhood, directly across designated pedestrian/bicycle lanes. And as you know, it is these bicycle lanes that children from Pemberton Heights use when riding to Casis Elementary. Argument can be made that the Westover/Northwood-MoPac interchange is a poorly designed highway interchange. I would be willing to guess that such an interchange would not be built today for reasons of safety, efficiency ect.

With regard to the installation of street lights/signals at this particular neighborhood & highway interchange: Like you, BrykerWoods DOES NOT support the decision to install “street signal lights” at the Westover/Northwood Loop1 interchange (at least on the east side of MoPAC). Primarily, because the signal lights will encourage traffic to race down Northwood and Westover just to make the light. Essentially treating the underpass as a chicane. It is precisely this reason that the stop signs were installed in the first place!

Yes Tarrytown & BrykerWoods “share” the Westover/Northwood-MoPac interchange, however let me take this opportunity to explain to you that the problems the BrykerWoods neighborhood have with the this particular interchange are different compared to those of the Tarrytown neighborhood. The curved ramps on the east side of MoPAC literally slingshot traffic at high rates of speed into & out of the neighborhood, directly across designated pedestrian/bicycle lanes. Northwood Road on the east side of MoPAC does not have traffic claming devices to slow traffic as does Westover west of MoPAC. The commuter cut-through traffic exiting/entering MOPAC hammers the neighborhoods east of MoPAC.

BrykerWoods has been VERY tolerant of the commuter cut-through traffic exiting/entering MOPAC, however each year the traffic gets worse and worse. And the problem the neighborhood has with this type of traffic is NOT that commuters are using our streets. The problem is the IRRESPONSIBLE use of our streets (i.e. SPEEDING). When the neighborhood streets are not packed with rush hour traffic, the cut-through traffic frequently travels at high rates of speed directly through the heart of the neighborhood.

BrykerWoods is working with both TxDOT and the city of Austin to address the speeding problems within our neighborhood. The BrykerWoods neighborhood was a final candidate last year in the city’s list of neighborhoods eligible for traffic calming initiatives. BrykerWoods finished 2nd place (behind the CherryWood neighborhood). As a traffic engineer, I think that you would probably agree that the BrykerWoods neighborhood is long over due for a traffic-calming program.

Finally, my solution? Excluding the option of closing the ramps (for which I think there is some very good argument), a better solution in my opinion would involve the use of traffic calming devices to SLOW traffic (similar to what has been done on Westover) and the installation of signage and/or lights placed in the pavement to EXPLICITLY notify traffic of high pedestrian activity. Similar to what has been done to increase pedestrian safety on Cross Park Drive at the TCAD facility and on Barton Springs road at the Austin Energy building pedestrian crossing. I am not quite so sure what could be done about the cars “cue jumping” MoPAC’s rush hour traffic via the Westover and Northwood ramps. This will continue to be a problem given the existing layout of the interchange.

Thank you for taking the time to present your observations and expertise. Although I disagree with you on the “effectiveness” of the new stop signs, I share your concerns for neighborhood safety. Please feel free to contact me and the BrykerWoods Neighborhood Association for further discussion and I encourage you to attend the WANG meeting Monday night October 4th where TxDOT will be speaking directly on the Westover/Northwood Loop1 interchange!

The future of MoPAC?

In 2001 the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) was planning "improvements" scheduled for MoPac. The changes were being made to improve flow and reduce congestion along the highway. The construction is scheduled to begin in about 5 to 7 years. At this time several plans are being considered (more information may be found at http://www.mopac183.com. Of the several plans being discussed, there are several issues that will directly effect the Bryker Woods Neighborhood.

• possible widening of MoPac (the addition of highway lanes)
• 35th Street interchange modifications (rerouting 35th Street under MoPac)
• modification or closing of the Westover/Northwood access ramps
• noise and aesthetic concerns (upper level HOV lanes)

Also see Stateman article Panel unveils MoPac ideas (September 29, 2001)

The initial TxDOT proposal.

TxDOT initially presented the Bryker Woods Neighborhood Association (BWNA) a plan for MoPac that called for 2 to 4 lanes of expansion. The interchange at 35th street was to be drastically modified. Plans showed 35th street going under MoPac and the access ramps at 35th street being streamlined. The plans presented to the BWNA board also showed the Westover/Northwood access ramps as being closed. The ramp closure was proposed for the following reasons: 1) reduce congestion on MoPac between Windsor and 35th Street and 2) permit safer and more efficient access ramps at the Windsor and the 35th street interchanges.

Since the TxDOT presentation to the BWNA board, the plans initially presented for MoPac are being reexamined and the closing of the Westover/Northwood ramps is now being reconsidered. This change quite possibly effects BrykerWoods the greatest on account that the modification of the Westover/Northwood access ramps will require re-engineering should the ramps remian open. Learn the latest regarding TxDOT's plans for MoPAC by visiting the "MoPAC Improvement Study" webpage.

What this means for the Bryker Woods neighborhood.

A lead engineer on the MoPac project has indicated that if the Northwood/Westover MoPac access ramps are to remain open, homes will have to be removed. Furthermore, if the Westover/Northwood ramps are to remain open the ramps will be re-engineered for greater efficiency. Therefore placing even more "cut-through" traffic on our neighborhood streets by making the ramps capable of delivering more commuter traffic through our neighborhood.

The removal of homes within the neighborhood is of dire concern. The issue "cut-though" traffic is also extremely important to the quality of life in BrykerWoods. At this time Northwood, 29th and Jefferson are all officially classified as "neighborhood" streets and not "arterial" streets. The re-engineering and reconstruction of the Westover/Northwood access ramps will clearly jeopardize the classification and "official" use of the BrykerWoods neighborhood streets. It is crucial that we do not permit the destruction of neighborhood homes and the reclassification of our neighborhood streets.

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