Traffic Calming
Slowing Down
Let’s Talk about Solutions
It’s all about safety!
An oft-heard complaint in Gold Beach is the number of vehicles that speed through town. Why does that happen? Consider that as you come into town from either direction, the highway has been meandering, curvy and restricted to two narrow lanes. Vehicles have been stuck for miles behind slow-moving trucks, motorhomes and vehicles towing boats and campers.
Then the roadway opens up to four gloriously wide lanes of traffic that are the envy of the best interstate highway system. The opportunity to get around the slow traffic is practically overwhelming as drivers step on the accelerator.
If we had a community-wide plan for making improvements to traffic patterns through town, Gold Beach could receive federal and state infrastructure funding. Those funds would also cover some of the expenses for undergrounding the utilities at the same time street improvements are made. When doing both projects together, the cost savings are substantial.
The economic benefits for our local businesses are immense when the community becomes walkable, parking is readily available, and traffic slows enough to see our charming town. Look for community meetings coming up over the next year!
What if?
No decisions have been made yet
but we would like to start the discussion…
We have lots to discuss about the many options that will likely be considered as the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) completes its upcoming traffic study in 2025. Local traffic versus through traffic have different needs. Keep in mind that traffic planning isn’t solely about motor vehicles. Other users of the roads and sidewalks, for example the needs of bicycles, pedestrians and emergency vehicles must be considered in transportation planning.
In Gold Beach, 18% of the population are under the age of 19, and 36% are over the age of 59. That means that more than half (54%) of the residents are likely to find crossing the street challenging. Deploying a variety of traffic-calming strategies could solve many of the issues with vehicles traveling unsafely through our community.
Not everyone will agree about what’s best for their personal needs but to get major funding through ODOT, we need to have a cohesive plan. Let’s roll up our sleeves and put our heads together to see where we can agree.
The image at the top of the page shows a road diet that includes ADA-compliant, 6-foot wide sidewalks, bicycle lanes, parking, crosswalk bulbouts (curb extensions) and a center turn lane. Immediately below is another concept drawing that keeps four lanes, although narrower, with prominent crosswalk markings and curb extensions to shorten the distance for pedestrians to cross. Both designs fall into the category of a road diet.
No decisions have been made yet, and perhaps a combination of strategies to calm traffic will help alleviate concerns. Our goal is to make our main street as safe as possible.
