04-24-1995 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MEMORANDUM TO:ORONO CITY COUNCIL FROM: Residents of Old Beach Road DATE: April 19, 1995 RE: Public Hearing on Closure of Old Beach Road — Background Information This memorandum and its attachments provide background information for the public hearing on the permanent closure of Old Beach Road. Summary of Issue -- Safety After over 10 months of study by Orono staff; safety concerns resulted in the staff recommending, and the City Council approving, the temporary closing of Old Beach Road until a hearing could be held on permanent closure. The safety concerns which led to this action are; • Old Beach Road is classified in Orono’s Comprehensive Plan as a “residential” street engineered to serve needs of the residents on the road (i.e., approximately 180 cars per day, assuming the standard ratio of 10 cars for each of the 18 potential residences). • Hennepin County traffic counts conducted in October of 1994 revealed that the actual number of cars in a 24-hour period was 3649 (see Attachment 1). This is many times the volume of traffic on the cities other “collector” roads, let alone a 24 foot wide residential street without shoulders. • Many drivers using the road as a short-cut seem unconcerned about safety ~ => A significant percentage of the 3600 cars exceed the posted 30 mph speed limit, with speeds of over 50 mph not uncommon. => Cars traveling at 30 mph are often passed by other vehicles. In a period of one week in late 1994, on three separate occasions cars ran the extended school bus stop sign, narrowly missing children. • The hazards are even greater for five residences with driveways which have blind entrances to the road near the crest of the hill at the north end of the road, just where cars often accelerate. • Poor sight lines each way and heavy traffic on County Road 19 make turning left fi’om Old Beach Road to County Road 19 hazardous.