Overview
On behalf of residents, councillor Johnson raised an issue about speeding concern along Cobden Road between Baseline Road and Iris Street and asked City staff to review the possibility of implementing speed humps. Upon review, it was identified that there were some historical records/inquiries about speeding along Cobden Road from the residents in the area. The staff also reviewed the speed data and found that although the location does not meet the speed threshold to be a part of Neighbourhood Traffic Calming (NTC) study list, it met the threshold required for the Temporary Traffic Calming (TTC) measures. As per the report ‘Temporary Traffic Calming Measures Program Update’ (escribemeetings.com) approved by the council in 2019, when the operating speed of the location is >=6km/hr than the posted speed limit, the staff can coordinate with the councillor and can consider implementation of temporary traffic calming measures. The approved 2019 TTC report also allows speed humps as one of the options for implementation as long as the criterion of the road is local residential, non-emergency route and non transit route.
Cobden Road is local residential and is neither a transit route nor a key emergency route. And since the operating speed on Cobden is 9 km/hr higher than posted 40km/hr, the location meets all the criteria for the implementation of speed humps. This information has been shared with the councillor and she is in support to proceed the process of implementing speed humps along Cobden Road.
Speed Humps
Speed humps are raised areas of the roadway, which cause vertical upward movement of traversing vehicles.
Pros
- Reduces vehicle speed at/near measure
- Relatively cost-effective and simple to design and implement
- Minimal modification of existing roadway geometry, less construction disruption
- Self-enforcing
Cons
- May increase traffic induced noise and vibrations
- May impact emergency response activities
- May increase vehicle travel time
- May cause discomfort to some drivers
Online Consultation
Proposed Plan
The city is proposing the following conceptual plan to address the concerns raised along Cobden Road and can be viewed in the image below.
Your feedback is important to us. An online survey is available for residents who live near the proposed study area and will be open for residents to complete until November 7, 2024. The survey results will help the study team determine the level of comfort within the community for the accelerated NTC study process and proposed plan.