Roundabouts, signals, and traffic, oh my



After reading last week’s front page article, “County holds last VC Road Corridor Plan workshop”, I expected to get to the end of the article and see “April fool”; but alas, I was wrong. In the fictitious Roadrunner April fool article from this last March 31st, a traffic engineer commented: “We are causing a major inconvenience to serve you better. If we really wanted to screw things up we’d install a Roundabout.” Now I’m wondering if in addition to being an extraterrestrial, David is clairvoyant as well. I’m just curious.
In The Valley Center Road Corridor Concept Plan, transforming VC’s main thoroughfare along a 2.5 mile stretch from Woods Valley Road to Cole Grade Road, employs a series of traffic calming elements built around four 2-lane roundabouts. Other key elements of the plan include five traffic signals. If carried out, the ambitious plan will cost an estimated $52 million. Think of the original gazillion dollars proposed for the cost of the California train to nowhere. Some of the cost would be for acquiring the necessary right of way for the roundabouts and other expansions. (I counted 10 roundabouts and 7 no left turn signs within that two and a half mile stretch.) Gauliee, talk about a waste of gas waiting to get around each circle!
Did you know that a roundabout is not the same as a traffic circle? It turns out, no pun intended, that small diameter “roundabouts” are used for traffic calming and large traffic circles are used to maintain the normal traffic flow. The upper speed limit for a roundabout is 25 mph, where traffic circles allow for speeds above 25 mph. I discovered that in a roundabout the space between vehicles is less, which may result in low-speed crashes and fender benders. I’ll bet you didn’t see that one coming.
My wife and I spent some time in New England about four years ago. They have a lot of roundabouts and traffic circles. I can’t count the number of times I ended up on the wrong road after making a wrong turn from the roundabout. The experience reminded me of the Griswolds in the movie, “European Vacation,” where Clark drives around and around in a London roundabout well into the night.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t really want to influence either the VC Planning Group or the County Board of Supervisors. Besides, who’s going to listen to a well-intentioned knucklehead like me? Apparently the county concerns are a “need for traffic calming to reduce speeding along the corridor.” The intent is a “desire to develop more of a village atmosphere.” Evidently, slowing traffic will encourage residents and visitors to shop in our village establishments. (Just think, while you are parked in traffic you could jump out of your car and go into a store, pick up a few things and return to your car just in time to continue waiting in traffic). Personally, I would rather take the Lake Wohlford Road alternate route and pay for the extra gas it would take just to avoid the frustration of the roundabouts. My guess is that “Kevin Johnston of the county Department of Planning & Development Services” who is promoting this idealistic and “well thought-out plan” for our community doesn’t live in Valley Center.
In the article concerning the maneuverability of large vehicles negotiating the roundabouts, Kevin Johnston said that it is a misconception that fire trucks and 18-wheelers would not be able to negotiate the roundabouts. If I were an 18-wheel trucker, I would be more concerned about the wait time in traffic. The truckers will probably continue on Hwy 76 to Interstate 15 rather than travel through Valley Center. Or they might prefer to take Lake Wohlford down through Escondido. Unfortunately, some of the large trailer trucks will have to make deliveries to businesses in our little town. What a challenge that will be. I feel for them.
The article also mentions that curb extensions and medians “will have the effect of slowing traffic.” Is there anything else that could possibly slow up traffic through VC? Well, I guess we could be required to get out and push our cars through the roundabouts. Silly you say? The environmentalists would buy into that in a blink of an eye. After all, aren’t they trying to get us out and walk more? Lighten up and try taking what I wrote with a grain of tongue in cheek realism. I do.

 

*Note: Opinions expressed by columnists and letter writers are those of the writers and not necessarily those of the newspaper.

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