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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-12-22 Public Comment - C. Christensen - Cottonwood Rd. Speed Study - Resident comment_requestFrom:Chad C To:kellycanyon@gmail.com; Agenda; Taylor Lonsdale; Marilee Brown Subject:Cottonwood Rd. Speed Study - Resident comment/request Date:Wednesday, January 12, 2022 10:47:29 AM Attachments:Cottonwood Speed Limit Letter.pdf Cottonwood Speed Study.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Bozeman Transportation Board, On 1/11/22, I attended the County Commission meeting where the Cottonwood Rd. speed study was considered and where the County Commission determined what recommendation they would make to MDT for Cottonwood speed limit adjustments. I made a public comment requesting a lower speed limit than recommended within the speed study for both the urban segment (Huffine Rd to Farmers Canal) as well as the rural-residential segment (from Farmers Canal to just south of the Stucky Roundabout). The County Commission considered public input on the rural segments of the study area and determined their recommendation that they will send to MDT, but they were reluctant to make a recommendation for the urban segment since the urban segment has been annexed by the city of Bozeman. They commented that it would be for the city to comment on the annexed segment. I'm reaching out to request that my attached letter be considered at the next Transportation Board meeting and that the City manager and engineer formulate and provide a speed limit recommendation to MDT for the annexed segment of Cottonwood Rd. I address the annexed (urban) segment in my letter and request the board and city recommend a 35mph speed limit in this segment which would match the similar urban segment of Cottonwood directly north of Huffine. I've attached my letter as well as the speed study. Thank you, Chad Christensen Greetings. My wife and I reside on Cottonwood Rd. within the speed study area. We also drive the study area daily and so base the following request on that experience as well as the completed speed study which I have reviewed. To better serve those that utilize the businesses within the study area as well as those that live within the study area, I request adopting slower speed limits than those suggested within the speed study; We request a 35mph special speed zone in the urban segment (U-1216) and 40mph special speed zone in the rural, state highway segment (S-345) from Farmers Canal to 950 feet south of the intersection with Stucky Road. Many residents of the study area and our neighbors have been interested in a speed reduction. I'd reached out to Bill Fogarty (MDT) some time ago and was pleased when he informed me there was already a speed study underway. After reviewing the completed speed study, the recommendation to reduce the speed limit by only 5mph seems a missed opportunity to get ahead of the road way users and residents' needs as area growth continues. The speed study noted a reduction in traffic in the study area over the study period. It should be noted that the later part of the study was conducted over a time period that spanned temporary business closures, temporary work-from-home situations and reduced recreational traffic in general. The urban segment of Cottonwood Rd. is annexed by the city and currently has a 50mph speed limit. This area requires the traffic entering and exiting from the gas station, new medical facility, existing Loyal Gardens Subdivision, and soon, the large new subdivision, to drive across several lanes of traffic. From personal experience, this has the effect of a wide spread in traffic speed. The speed study recommends a change to 45mph in this urban segment, however, a 35 mph speed limit in this section would reduce that speed difference making for safer traffic flow. A 35mph speed limit would also match the existing speed limit on Cottonwood Rd. directly north of Huffine which is a similar urban roadway in that it has four lanes with business-traffic entering and exiting the roadway. The new medical facility, existing gas station, existing subdivision and under-construction subdivision are noted in the study, but it appear that no consideration was given to the ongoing development on 19th Ave and surrounding area that is, and will, create additional traffic pressure via Stucky Rd. The study shows Stucky Rd is the primary traffic corridor impacting Cottonwood road. Stucky Rd is rural and, unlike Cottonwood Rd., has no subdivision along its entirety and yet Stucky has a reasonable 40mph speed limit. A speed limit of 40mph on Cottonwood Rd., north of the roundabout, would make the speed limit consistent between Stucky Rd. and Cottonwood Rd. A 40mph speed limit would also reduce risk for local resident drivers pulling onto the roadway as well as pedestrians and cyclists. Of consideration is that the rural segment lanes have non- traversable ditches and lanes are only 10 feet wide with no shoulder and, per the speed study, do not meet the current design standard of 12 feet wide lanes with 2 foot shoulder. Also note the approximately ½ mile long section of Cottonwood Rd., between Farmers Canal and Stucky Rd., is defined as “rural residential” and has Staffanson Subdivision, and individual driveways, along its entire length. Staffanson subdivision consists of ~35 houses directly on, or feeding into Cottonwood, road. Gallatin County requested this speed study in 2018 and we are now entering the recommendation and comment period in 2022; 4 years later. A considerable challenge with the fast-paced area growth is proactively staying ahead of infrastructure and roadway needs rather than reacting to those needs. In the future, another 4 year study period may impede timely speed limit adjustments vs a proactive adjustment now. The County Commission and City has an opportunity to proactively recommend a reduced speed limit of 35mph in the urban highway segment (U-1216) and 40mph in the rural, state highway segment (S-345) rather than the study-recommended 45mph for these segments. This would align speed limits with similar surrounding roads (the existing 35mph north of Huffine and 40mph on Stucky Road) and will also avoid another costly and time consuming study in the coming years when continued growth will inevitably increase traffic and increase risk for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists in these segments. Our request is for the County Commission and City to recommend the following: A 35-mph speed limit beginning at the intersection with Huffine Lane (straight-line station 57+00) and continuing south to Farmers Canal (straight-line station 80+00). A 40-mph speed limit beginning at Farmers Canal (straight-line station 80+00) and continuing south to approximately 950 feet south of the intersection with Stucky Road (straight-line station 120+00). I have no specific request for the remaining segment (the speed study recommends 50mph and it's my understanding the county commission is going to recommend 45mph for this segment): Beginning approximately 950 feet south of the intersection with Stucky Road (straight-line station 120+00) and continuing south for an approximate distance of 2.81 miles, approximately 250-feet north of the intersection with Johnson Road (straight-line station 268+50) Thank you for the opportunity to comment and for consideration of this request.