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Engineering: South Sunset average speeds near 46 mph; committee asks for recommendations after crash warrant at Poe Street
Summary
An internal speed study and a consultant intersection analysis found high speeds on South Sunset and a crash warrant at Poe Street; the committee asked engineering to return with recommended countermeasures and to coordinate with public safety.
City engineering staff presented speed and volume data and a separate consultant intersection analysis for South Sunset on July 21, showing high travel speeds, elevated crash counts at one intersection and a recommendation to study countermeasures.
Using deployed speed equipment from April 27 to May 2, engineering recorded 40,043 vehicle speed observations on South Sunset. Staff reported that 79.74 percent of observed vehicles exceeded the posted 35 mph limit, the overall average speed was about 40 mph, and the 85th percentile speed (a standard engineering metric) was roughly 46 mph. "Our study basically indicates that the normal traffic flow speed is approximately 46 miles an hour or 11 miles an hour over the posted speed," the presenter said.
Lee Engineering analyzed three intersections (Hobbs, Poe and Jaffa) and concluded none met a volume warrant for an all‑way stop. The consultant's crash analysis, however, identified Poe Street as having sufficient crashes to warrant action under the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). The consultant recommended that the city consider countermeasures—such as traffic control devices or other treatments—because a crash warrant was met even though traffic volumes did not mandate an all‑way stop.
Councilors expressed alarm at the speed findings and at low visible enforcement. One councilor noted local police issued on average about one citation per week on the corridor over recent weeks and urged stepped‑up enforcement alongside engineering countermeasures. The committee asked engineering to return with a menu of feasible remedial options, cost estimates and a plan to coordinate with the public safety committee for enforcement and implementation.
No immediate traffic control changes were ordered at the meeting; engineering was requested to develop options and present recommendations to the committee and public safety.
