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Remember no one is asking for an end to traffic calming, just TC reform. You be the judge.
From Transportation for Livable Communities NETwork Links to the TLCNetwork.org should now be directed to clf.org/transportation
Copyrighted materials from TLC Network are now found at the Conservation Law Foundation
by
Robert A.
White, Jonathan Owens, and Monroe Whitaker - March 1998
Traffic Calming, or speed management through design, has received considerable popular attention nationwide in recent years as ISTEA (Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act) and other federally-mandated programs have influenced and changed the tenor or roadway improvement projects.
In Vermont, our state has a long history of roadways that fit well into our rural landscape, our villages and our towns and cities. These roadways contribute a vital element to community and economic life, and also, as an attraction for tourism, offer considerable economic and recreational values.
In our view, Traffic Calming represents a set of roadway design tools and principles where the road and its context can be placed in better balance and where community values as they relate to traffic management are more fully represented and integrated into the actual roadway design. Roadways and streets are treated as corridors which serve m any functions, and each of these functions is identified and evaluated as to its importance. Resultant design reflects this multi-functional aspect and provides a balance for both conflicting and complementary demands. NOT ALL TRAFFIC CALMING MEASURES ARE APPROPRIATE IN ALL SETTINGS. These tools and techniques must be carefully chosen and thoug htfully, appropriately and, frequently, creatively applied.
On many streets and roadways in heavily developed or congested areas, recent "improvements" have resulted in faster traffic and resulting safety conflicts. In other cases roadway improvements have created an incentive for commercial development which has brought congestion and sprawl. We generally consider traffic calming tools as falling unde r one of several categories:
Often minor adjustments to roadway character will serve to make the road safer for both pedestrians and vehicles. Such simple techniques as access management to limit and define curb cuts and to create separated vehicular- pedestrian routes can work very well. At intersections, Traffic Calming techniques can be employed to better define "traf fic manners," thereby making an intersection safer and more efficient.
Roads that experience speeding problems are frequently the result of excessive width, lack of "friction" alongside, and a "detachment" of the road from the town or landscape. Traffic Calming measures that reduce lane width, introduce roadside "friction" features like street trees, and prominently define pedestrian crossing points can have a si gnificant improved impact on roadway speeds - from 20% to 50% reductions depending on the technique and location. It has been shown that similar safety improvements can reduce crashes by as much as 80%, and those that do occur tend to be less severe.
As a general rule, we regard Traffic Calming as an extremely valuable tool in rediscovering and redefining the road-town-country relationship, so that an optimal balance is ensured. We generally do not use the more punitive or extreme measures of Traffic Calming that are found in certain parts of this country or elsewhere in the world. We empl oy sound traditional traffic design and engineering practices to our designs, paying particular attention to adequate visibility and sight distances and corridor consistency in a manner that enables motorists to understand the context of the roadway - urban, village or rural. We also employ many other design features in our work to further the ab ove goal of re-establishing the road/context balance. Many of these elements are defined in the new VAOT Design Standards, of which the Office of Robert A. White was a principal author.
These features and techniques include:
In the end, we have found that most communities with whom we work feel that we have helped them "get back their town" and recapture that special feeling of roads that have a comfortable, almost familiar-like "fit." While we use historic data and photographs for this work, we also use Traffic Calming features to create "new" town or village cen ters. On most projects we feel that our greatest sense of accomplishment is in providing enhanced safety and access to both motorists and pedestrians while creating a visual interest through roadway design that adds greatly to a community's sense of place and quality of life.