Comments on: Savannah moves ahead on plans to make Price Street one lane with parking and a bike lane http://www.billdawers.com/2011/08/08/savannah-moves-ahead-on-plans-to-make-price-street-one-lane-with-parking-and-a-bike-lane/ Wed, 10 Aug 2011 20:08:06 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 By: Jason Nielubowicz http://www.billdawers.com/2011/08/08/savannah-moves-ahead-on-plans-to-make-price-street-one-lane-with-parking-and-a-bike-lane/#comment-1582 Wed, 10 Aug 2011 20:08:06 +0000 http://www.billdawers.com/?p=1013#comment-1582 I’m definitely a fan of #5 for the stretch of E. Broad between Gwinnett and Liberty. The street is entirely too wide there and I imagine that contributes to drivers feeling free to speed up.

]]> By: bill dawers http://www.billdawers.com/2011/08/08/savannah-moves-ahead-on-plans-to-make-price-street-one-lane-with-parking-and-a-bike-lane/#comment-1572 Wed, 10 Aug 2011 19:21:48 +0000 http://www.billdawers.com/?p=1013#comment-1572 In reply to BroadStResident.

Why all the anger?

A few points:
1. There have been plenty of crashes all over Price — I know of one lot at the corner of Anderson that has been plowed into twice that I can recall. Others too. It’s not a problem at one intersection. Your statement is factually incorrect.
2. Price only gets something less than 6,000 cars/day (I’m guessing right now but I can check), so East Broad is unlikely to get more than a tiny percentage of additional cars — and that’s only if it’s made two-way for its entire length. Almost no one is going to move from Price to East Broad under the current configuration, because East Broad southbound ends at a stoplight at Gwinnett.
3. If you think East Broad is currently a speedway north of Gwinnett, go take a look at the portions of it south of Gwinnett, which are two lanes one-way.
4. I have literally never heard a complaint about traffic from anyone on East Broad. I fully believe you that it’s a problem, and it’s exactly the type of thing I would write about if it were presented to me in a convincing way.
5. If it is such a problem on East Broad on the two-way portion from Gwinnett to Bay, then let’s think about ways to slow the traffic down. The light at Oglethorpe certainly slowed traffic down along that portion, and the light at President Street obviously dampens speeds to some degree. If the issue is primarily from Gwinnett to Liberty — a substantial stretch with essentially no stops and a very wide street (which always encourages higher speeds) — then we should be considering various changes to the street design that would help. Adding angled parking with bumpouts for pedestrians at crossings would be worth a look. (There’s a good pic from Newnan, Georgia here: http://www.landscapeonline.com/research/article/7444.) Perhaps we could even look at a planted median like on MLK (the old West Broad, which is probably similar in width).

]]> By: BroadStResident http://www.billdawers.com/2011/08/08/savannah-moves-ahead-on-plans-to-make-price-street-one-lane-with-parking-and-a-bike-lane/#comment-1571 Wed, 10 Aug 2011 18:58:34 +0000 http://www.billdawers.com/?p=1013#comment-1571 t well informed about". OK Mr. Dawers, let us ask the crossing guard at East Broad Elementary School, Ms. West. Daily, Ms. West says she has to dodge speeding cars to safely cross kindergardeners and first graders to East Broad Elementary. On occasion SCMPD will run a speed trap, but only after Ms. West calls multiple times. Or lets ask my neighbors who have lost pets on East Broad. I am in favor of slowing traffic in a densely populated city, don't get me wrong. Sure Price Street will be safer, and Mayor Johnson will have a safer bike ride home. But at what cost? Four thousand more cars on East Broad daily...really? What next? "East Broad has room for four lanes, lets really get it going". Once again the concerns from the people on the fringe of the historic district get swept under the rug. After all we don't want property value to drop. And Mr. Dawers, the "disturbingly common crashes into houses" you mentioned like Chicken Little, have occurred at one intersection. In fact one house, at Price and Gordon, has been hit several times by drivers running a stop sign. The city recently installed a flashing yellow light.]]> I see the point of turning Price Street into a tranquil, tree lined street like many streets in downtown.
My problem starts with Mr. Dawers’ heralding the conversion of East Broad into a two way street and city officials pushing someone’s traffic problem onto another street with hopes that it will go away. The concern should be for those of us living and walking on East Broad. It is already a unregulated speedway from Gwinnett to Bay Street(often the worst offenders being CAT buses). There are several Churches, an elementary and middle school, the city’s only dog park, pedestrians, a county park and residents on East Broad Street. Not to mention the children at the Boys and Girls Club who frequently cross the street unsupervised. Now the suggestion of converting two way traffic on East Broad from Victory to Bay is catamount to breaking a levee and unleashing a torrent of speeding cars, truck and buses down a pedestrian busy street, many are whom under the age of 15. But like Mr. Dawers said, “all sorts of objectors will come out of the woodwork…their objections would be easy to dismiss, if they would only ask for legitimate answers instead of pontificating on issues they aren’t well informed about”.
OK Mr. Dawers, let us ask the crossing guard at East Broad Elementary School, Ms. West. Daily, Ms. West says she has to dodge speeding cars to safely cross kindergardeners and first graders to East Broad Elementary. On occasion SCMPD will run a speed trap, but only after Ms. West calls multiple times. Or lets ask my neighbors who have lost pets on East Broad.
I am in favor of slowing traffic in a densely populated city, don’t get me wrong. Sure Price Street will be safer, and Mayor Johnson will have a safer bike ride home. But at what cost? Four thousand more cars on East Broad daily…really? What next? “East Broad has room for four lanes, lets really get it going”. Once again the concerns from the people on the fringe of the historic district get swept under the rug. After all we don’t want property value to drop. And Mr. Dawers, the “disturbingly common crashes into houses” you mentioned like Chicken Little, have occurred at one intersection. In fact one house, at Price and Gordon, has been hit several times by drivers running a stop sign. The city recently installed a flashing yellow light.

]]> By: Chad warner http://www.billdawers.com/2011/08/08/savannah-moves-ahead-on-plans-to-make-price-street-one-lane-with-parking-and-a-bike-lane/#comment-1548 Tue, 09 Aug 2011 00:07:39 +0000 http://www.billdawers.com/?p=1013#comment-1548 Having lived in 2 locations off of Price street for about 7 years, and riding a bike as my primary means of transportation during that same time, I think this is a great move by the city for this street.

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