City staff outlines Neighborhood Traffic Management Program updates; Crestline chosen for near-term trial

City staff presented an update May 19 on the 2024 Neighborhood Traffic Management Program (NTMP), describing application results, revised scoring and a near-term plan to test temporary traffic-calming on Crestline Drive.

Dave (staff member) told the Connected City Advisory Board the program has approximately $200,000 per year to address neighborhood speeding through a mix of education, enforcement and traffic-calming projects. Staff said they received 27 valid applications in the most recent round, gathered speed and volume data, held a public open house in March and revised scoring criteria based on additional data collection.

Why this matters: The NTMP funds local interventions intended to lower speeds and reduce crashes in residential areas. The board’s input helps prioritize which neighborhoods are studied and whether projects proceed as temporary demonstrations before permanent installation.

Staff explained the program’s screening and categorization: locations that meet thresholds for average speed and/or volumes are eligible; projects that are likely to affect adjacent streets are treated as “neighborhood projects” requiring a coordinated approach, while isolated locations are considered “minor projects.” Examples identified by staff included a cluster of high-ranking neighborhood-project streets west of the university (Stratford, University, West Hills area) and several collector/minor-candidate streets such as Overland and Harvard.

Dave said Old West Lawrence remains the program’s first completed neighborhood project after roughly four years of data collection and phased implementation. For the current year, staff said about $150,000 of the program budget remains and staff plan to use that amount to encumber a Crestline Drive project; temporary devices will be tested first and permanent devices considered later if the trial reduces speeds.

Board members asked about clustering of high-scoring streets near the university and about coordination with campus and development projects. Dave said the area has long been identified for speed and volume concerns and noted future development and the university gateway project may affect long-term solutions. On questions about crash counts, staff said the program’s scoring includes crash data and that some apparent counts in summary tables are ranking identifiers rather than raw crash totals; the NTMP dashboard and attachments provide additional detail.

Next steps: Staff will proceed with temporary traffic-calming tests on Crestline Drive later this year, begin public engagement for the higher-priority neighborhood projects (those the table identified as neighborhood-level candidates) and return to the board before any permanent construction. Projects that meet program thresholds remain on the ranked list for future funding cycles; staff said the next Call for Projects is expected in 2026.

Budget and timing details: The NTMP uses general-fund dollars that must be obligated in the current calendar year; staff said permanent traffic-calming installations are often scheduled for summer months and that some projects will require more than one budget year to complete given current program funding levels.