Lawrence staff move Crestline Drive speed‑cushions plan toward City Commission after neighborhood support

City staff presented a plan July 14 to install speed cushions along Crestline Drive in Lawrence and said they will take the proposal to the City Commission for design approval and funding encumbrance.

The plan targets a corridor of the collector street with five speed cushions spaced about 250–300 feet apart and a cushion at the Yale/Crestline intersection adjacent to a safe‑route‑to‑school crossing. Staff said the 85th‑percentile measured speed on Crestline was 38 mph where the posted limit is 30 mph and that the roadway carries “over 3,000 vehicles per day,” figures staff said drove the evaluation and ranking of the project.

The project moved through the city’s Neighborhood Traffic Management Program. Staff said they received more than 110 public comments (mostly from neighborhood residents) and “over 50 letters” of support for Crestline, making it one of the highest‑scoring minor projects in the 2024 evaluation. The immediate next steps, staff said, are to present the plan to the City Commission, encumber available 2025 funds before year end, complete design this year and construct the cushions in summer 2026 when school is out.

“We do speed cushions on collector streets where we have emergency vehicles that use them, so they have the cutouts,” the staff presenter said while walking the board through the proposal and layout. He added that the northernmost cushion is recommended at the Yale intersection because that is a school crossing.

Board members and meeting participants raised technical and neighborhood concerns. Questions included whether speed cushions could increase vehicle emissions (a public comment raised that point) and whether the construction on North Iowa has changed traffic patterns onto Crestline. On emissions, the presenter said forcing vehicles to slow and reaccelerate could “arguably in the aggregate” produce a tiny increase in emissions but that he did not believe it would have a “measurable impact on emissions.” On traffic shifting due to nearby construction, staff said the traffic ranking and data that justified Crestline’s high score were collected before Iowa construction began.

Members also asked why speed cushions were chosen over alternatives such as curb bump‑outs, chicanes or raised crosswalks. Staff said on collector streets like Crestline the city’s experience shows cushions are the most effective device; other measures often conflict with emergency‑vehicle access, storm‑drain structures or cost constraints. Staff noted raised crosswalks would require storm‑drain work and higher costs and that curb pullouts are more expensive and require more maintenance. They also said the proposed layout was sized to fit the remaining 2025 budget.

Neighborhood sight‑distance concerns were discussed. Staff and commenters noted a vertical curve near Orchard Lane that limits sight lines; the presentation cited an advisory sign showing a 20 mph advisory at that intersection and said cushions would help slow vehicles approaching the curve.

The board did not take a formal vote on the plan at the meeting. Staff characterized the agenda item as an opportunity for the advisory board’s feedback before referral to the City Commission. Staff also said they will refine exact cushion locations during final design to avoid utilities and driveways and that temporary trials remain an option for minor projects but were not used in this case because of the labor and bolting required (staff said each hump uses “200 and some bolts”).

If approved by the City Commission, staff said construction is planned for summer 2026 and that final placement would be coordinated to avoid driveways and underground utilities.

The project page and public comments are linked from the Neighborhood Traffic Management Program website; staff asked that the speed and volume data (the 85th‑percentile speed and vehicle counts) be highlighted on the public materials to explain the rationale to residents who questioned the need.