County board OKs plan to slow down traffic
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, December 8, 2009
A process to allow for speed bumps to be installed to slow traffic in neighborhoods passed on a vote of Warren County supervisors Monday, with participation largely limited to property owners.
The policy, under review for a year, allows for a single resident or a group of residents to apply for a “traffic-calming” device, then secure signatures from at least 80 percent of residents in an affected area within 60 days if county engineers, based on traffic counts, deem the area eligible for speed controls.
Eligible participation for parcels with more than one owner is limited to a single owner, according to the final version. Signatures from those leasing single-family dwellings abutting an affected roadway may be counted in place of the owner if the owner lives outside Warren County. Only one signature may be submitted from apartments and duplexes, either the property owner or an authorized representative.
One resident spoke against the policy during a hearing Oct. 20. A public comment period ended Nov. 20 with no written correspondence.
Supervisors were moved to form a policy after receiving letters from individual constituents, in most cases those living near major thoroughfares.
Two devices were specified as acceptable by Warren County for neighborhood traffic calming — speed humps and mini-circles. County engineers have estimated the traditional speed hump to have the lowest cost compared to mini-circles or other road designs, at about $3,000 each. Specs for speed humps in the policy specify a parabolic hump 12 to 14 feet long and 3 to 4 inches high. The circles are raised islands built into an intersection that slows vehicles down by forcing them around a circle.
*
Contact Danny Barrett Jr. at dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com