Clairmont Heights Civic Association

Revised March 6, 2009...

Are the traffic control plan and traffic calming program related or similar?

No, the traffic control plan and the County's traffic calming program are not related. The traffic calming program is a County program wherein residents on a street or portion of street can petition to have traffic calming measures installed primarily to slow speeding traffic. The traffic control plan is informed by relevant peer reviewed literature and was designed by neighborhood residents in consultation with County experts it is meant to decrease the volume of cut-through traffic during rush hours on Monday through Friday.

Does the traffic control plan use speed tables, medians etc?

No. Neighbors came together and devised a comprehensive plan that uses only hour based turn limitation signs in necessary locations to control the flow of cut-through traffic.

Why do we need a traffic control plan?

A large number of resident's in both Clairmont Heights and Medlock are concerned about the volume of cut-through traffic in our area. Present and proposed residential and commercial growth around us is likely to compound the present problem. Thus, neighbors wanted to be proactive to deal with the massive amount of cut-through traffic experienced on our residential streets.
There is a great deal of development proposed around us. Here are a few of the developments that are "done deals": CDC expansion on Clifton Road, VA Expansion and consolidation on Clairmont Road, and Emory's mixed-use/residential development on Clifton Road. Proposed developments that are likely along Lawrenceville HWY are both numerous and large in scale. (Lou Sohb site, Suburban Plaza, Majestic Conference Center and Hotel, and others). Also there is the massive redevelopment of Executive Park, which at present has not been announced as "on-hold". All of these developments ring the CHCA and MANA area and are likely to lead to increased cut-through traffic/speeding traffic. Additionally, the parking deck at Emory's Clairmont Campus is to nearly double in size, and thus it is likely Emory generated traffic alone will increase. There are several recent and past County studies that demonstrate speeding problems and over volume issues on Demsond, Willivee and N. Superior. Vehicles have been recorded going over 75 MPH on both Desmond and N. Superior and there was a 50+ MPH fatality on Willivee in late 2007. Additionally, scores of residents have attested to speeding and volume problems on the same or other streets in CHCA and MANA, reporting life and limb close-calls, and repeated property damage to vehicles, mailboxes, landscaping, and retaining walls. Logically, it is expected that by reducing or eliminating cut-through traffic we will also have fewer speeding cars during rush hours.

What is the Traffic Control Plan and what is based upon?

Residents who attended meetings and/or provided input over the course of the year wanted a plan that met these criteria:

1. Did not involve traffic calming devices

2. Did not change street routes or directions of travel

3. Provided for ease of resident movement in and out of the neighborhood

4. Was comprehensive in nature and did not result in burden on one area at the benefit of another area

5. Would greatly diminish cut-through traffic, and in turn decrease the number of speeding cars during rush hours

The traffic control plan uses the perimeter control approach which you can view on the CHCA website (http://clairmontheights.org/TrafficControl) in the final version of the plan. The plan is presented in color PDF format there. The perimeter control approach meets the above criteria fully. By not allowing turns either between 6-9 AM and or 4-7 PM (as appropriate), into the neighborhood at access points all around the perimeter, cut-through traffic is forced to continue travel on the major roads upon which it should remain. It is important to remind readers that residents are excepted from the signage.

Is it legal to keep cut-through drivers off of public streets at certain times?

Yes, so long as the street does not become a de facto private street. The County's power to protect the life and health of its residents is derived from the Georgia constitution. Several areas in DeKalb have no left or no right turn signage in place because of the various risks to drivers and/or the community associated with the direction, volume or speed of traffic. These signs can be found along Clairmont Road, Clifton Road, Ponce and others throughout DeKalb County.

Will this impact traffic on the arterials around the neighborhood?

This possibility is being taken into account by County planners. While it is a possibility, it is not an inevitability for a few reasons. 1) By not allowing left and right turns off of moving traffic the traffic will experience a longer period of uninterrupted flow until it comes to the next light. Light adjustments can accommodate flow. 2) Turning cars from faster moving traffic exiting arterial streets tend to stack up once they meet their turn at the intersection with slower residential streets... this in turn leads to back ups on the arterial which would not exist if large numbers of cars were not making turns onto residential streets. 3) The County has traffic channelization (bollards, jersey wall etc..) in the special land use permit (SLUP) connected with Emory's garage building permits. The traffic congestion that these commuters cause on Clairmont and at the intersection of Clairmont and N. Decatur will no longer be built up on these streets, rather they will have to wait their turn on Starvine Way and/or in the garage until such time as they can enter Clairmont Road. All in all, stating that the Traffic Control Plan will cause problems on arterials is both speculation and misses the point that the arterials are already a problem and the County has plans to work on the arterials. The statement also brings us full circle to the original problem (cut-through traffic) that needs to be addressed within the neighborhood by its residents.

Will installing the traffic control signs cost me money?

No. The cost of installing the signage is covered under existing property taxation.

When are the turn limitations in effect, and where can I view them?

The turn limitations are in effect on certain streets from 6-9 AM and on certain streets from 4-7 PM Monday through Friday only. Maps that display the turn limitations in great detail can be found at the neighborhood website www.clairmontheights.org/TrafficControl . Additional information is available there under the traffic control plan tab.

Will this keep me from getting in and out of the neighborhood?

No. Residents are excepted from the signage. The plan calls for all bona-fide neighborhood residents to be able to purchase a very low cost hang-tag or sticker for their vehicles. The details of this, and several other possibilities, are being worked out with the County.

What about visitors, tradesmen, caregivers and emergency vehicles?

There are two solutions/options to the problem posed in this question. First, it is important to point out that the traffic control plan takes this point into account by allowing for multiple methods of entry into the neighborhood at all times of day. A visitor, tradesmen, caregiver etc. simply needs to approach an entry from the right direction e.g. right hand turns onto Desmond are allowed. Emergency vehicles are not prohibited form making turns at any time. Second, residents are still working on an implementation policy that will exempt tradesmen, caregivers etc. that make turns during restricted hours.

How does the traffic control plan work if visitors can still get into the neighborhood between 6 -9 AM and 4-7 PM? Won't cut-through traffic do the same?

While this is a possibility, the approach a vehicle would need to take to enter the neighborhood is not an approach that is conducive to generating the significant amount of cut-through traffic we experience now. Study the map which details the signs and this is quite evident.

How long before the traffic control plan will go into effect?

The initial planning meetings between residents and the County began on January 10th 2008. The collaborative planning process involved hundreds of neighbors and spanned from April to November 2008. The collaborative implementation policy development meetings began in Jan 2009 and will run through late 2009. By that time both a plan and the implementation policy for the plan should be done. Early 2010, would be soonest that the traffic control plan would go into effect.

What is the history of inter and intra-neighborhood communications related to the Traffic Control Plan

· There were 4 publicly announced meetings (held between April and Nov 2008) to work on the plan.

· These meetings were announced in advance each time on the CHCA Website

· The meetings were announced 4 times via the CHCA Listserv (you can join the listserv by visiting the neighborhood website www.clairmontheights.org and contacting webmaster).

· Residents were informed and encouraged to participate in the planning meetings 2 times via a hand delivered newsletter to all CHCA households in May and September 2008

· Multiple times meetings were announced using signage at intersections in both the CHCA and MANA areas (including Desmond, Willivee, N. Superior, and others in the MANA area).

· Additionally, the Traffic Control Plan's development phase was announced at several MANA meetings and the CHCA Annual meeting over the course of 2008.

· Opportunities to review and discuss the Plan were provided at the Annual CHCA Block Party/Potluck which was also announced via multiple signs and various electronic means

· Traffic Control Planning Committee members email addresses and contact information accompanied every electronic and print announcement to solicit comment on the traffic control plan during the calendar year 2008.

Who participated in developing the plan?

Over 200 residents attended the traffic control planning meetings in person throughout the year. Scores of additional residents provided feedback via email, phone calls and personal conversations with Board or Committee members. Several Emory University representatives attended the meetings; Representatives from Kathy Gannon's office attended all the meetings. The DeKalb Director of Transportation and or his representatives attended the meetings; Jeff Rader attended 2 of the meetings, and met several times separately with the Committee throughout the year.

What other options were considered and rejected during the year long planning process?

Several options were discarded after initial meetings between the County and the Committee, and the Committee and residents.

1. More traffic calming - was turned down because of the immense difficulty given in obtaining the legally required 65% of the owner's signatures in order to implement a traffic calming plan across the 2000+ house area. Additionally, there are some who do not favor traffic calming devices. This approach would be nearly, if not entirely, impossible to achieve and was thought that it would not significantly limit cut-through traffic.

2. Various forms or placement of street closures. Some residents suggested physical closings/barriers in various forms/configurations at Willivee, Desmond, Blackmon, N. Superior, and Harrington. Physical street closures present several negatives, not the least of which is the possible impeding of emergency vehicles, and creating obscure or difficult routes to reach homes. Broad resident support was also not seen as likely.

3. Use of active speed monitoring devices that flash oncoming vehicles speeds. These signs cost $2,500 each, making them too expensive and research and county experience showed were not effective beyond the short term. Additionally, such signs would do nothing to control the over-volume of cut-through traffic.

What options are being discussed to have consistent police enforcement of the traffic control plan?

Option 1) Have a Hour Based Resident Traffic Only Ordinance passed that authorizes police enforcement of the traffic control signage. Residents can be distinguished from non-residents via a decal or hang tag which can be made available to all residents for a very nominal fee, somewhere between 1-5 dollars per car with no need to renew.
Option 2) An official resident referendum held during a county election to establish a Special Purpose Tax District. This option, while a bigger task, would provide both the CHCA and MANA areas with not only the traffic control signage but also with an assigned police officer to our neighborhoods only (hours to be determined and in proportion to the cost). The option was presented to us by our Commissioner, Jeff Rader. If residents voted, and the referendum passed, the likely cost per household would be somewhere in the neighborhood of $25-$80 per year, added as a federally tax deductible line item to your DeKalb County property tax bill. Additional details are forthcoming.

What will happen in the PHASE II meetings?

Interested residents to come together and collaboratively develop the policies and procedures related to implementing the traffic control plan and police enforcement of the signage. The first Phase II meeting was held on February 5th at the North Decatur Presbyterian Church from 7-9 PM. These policies and procedures will be integral to full implementation of the traffic control plan. Some of the issues discussed in PHASE II will include:

1. Answering questions on Phase I for newcomers/others

2. Collecting input and opinion on Option 1 and 2 above, and gathering and evaluating other options that may be provided

3. Choosing either a hang tag or decal for resident's vehicle identification

4. Writing implementation policies of the ordinance for police enforcement (e.g. how to deal with visitors, tradesmen etc... during the hours of 6-9 AM and 4-7 PM) Logic and common sense will be written into these policies.

5. Listing the obvious exclusions to the turn prohibitions such as school buses, Emory Shuttle, police, fire, and EMS personnel, medical transport services other than ambulances, County vehicles, and taxi cabs.

What does research suggests will be the benefits of implementing the Traffic Control Plan?

1. Neighborhood streets will be used in their appropriate capacity as designated by the County.

2. Safer streets for children, pedestrians, and pets

3. Reduced trash/litter on streets and in yards

4. Quieter neighborhood/ Improved Aesthetics (less traffic, less noise)

5. Stabilized/Increased property values

6. Possible increased sense of community/neighborhood

Were any traffic engineering professionals involved during this process, and is there professional literature to support this action?

Yes, the County's Director of Transportation advised the committee and had significant input and comment on the plan during the year long series of meetings in 2008.
Professional literature abounds on the suggested health, property value, social, and aesthetic benefits of controlling over-volume traffic. Below is a short list of such references.
1) Gordon Bagby (1980), "Effects of Traffic Flow on Residential Property Values," Journal of the American Planning Association, Vol. 46, No. 1, January 1980, pp. 88-94.

2) Mark Eppli and Charles C. Tu (2000), Valuing the New Urbanism; The Impact of New Urbanism on Prices of Single-Family Homes, Urban Land Institute (www.uli.org).

3) William Hughes and C.F. Sirmans (1992), "Traffic Externalities and Single-Family House Prices, "Journal of Regional Science, Vol. 32, No. 4, pp. 487-500.

4) LGC (2001), The Economic Benefits of Walkable Communities, Local Government Commission (www.lgc.org).