Carefree Truth
Issue #548, February 10, 2017
20 year Carefree resident Robert Jacobson felt the bike lane project inadvertently created bad signage and dangerous highways on Cave Creek Road and on Tom Darlington Drive.
He said the medians are now filled with big trees, making those highways extremely dangerous. 2 trees have been scraped. He is unhappy with the unsafe highways. Mr. Jacobson submitted his document to the Town in December but thought it had "fallen through the cracks". He spoke with the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT). Money is available to fix the situation and he hoped it would be addressed soon.
Steven Hatcher, an applicant for the Planning and Zoning Commission who was in the audience, asked if Mr. Jacobson was saying the trees were too big and should be made smaller so cars hitting them would not be damaged. Mr. Jacobson said yes, and that the driver could be killed. Mr. Hatcher said the trees that had been hit prevented the cars from going across the traffic lanes and hitting oncoming cars, perhaps saving lives. Mr. Jabobson replied that was "another story". Mr. Hatcher said the trees prevent those potential fatalities.
Mayor Les Peterson asked Gary Neiss to comment. Mr. Neiss explained that the Town had tried to set up meetings with Mr. Jacobson but that Mr. Jacobson had wanted representatives from ADOT to be there. ADOT only controlled the streets while the bike lane project was ongoing. The Town reviewed Mr. Jacobson's concerns with ADOT and ADOT felt there were no safety issues. But the Town will continue to monitor the trees as they grow, and can remove them if they become a safety hazard. Trees have been removed in the past. Councilman Jim Van Allen said, "Don't remove any trees". Mayor Peterson suggested setting up a meeting with Mr. Jacobson to go out and look at the trees. Mr. Jacobson said, "Let's do it now". Mayor Peterson replied that he didn't have his calendar with him but said he would call Mr. Jacobson.
Canyon Creek Estates resident Tom Fielder had safety concerns about Cave Creek Road north of Carefree Highway. About a year ago, someone hit the Canyon Creek subdivision's decorative entry wall. Mr. Fielder spoke with Town staff but they didn't see a need to reduce the 45 mph speed limit at that time. He said there has been further residential development which accesses Cave Creek Road, and the addition of the bike paths, all of which he felt makes the speed limit very unsafe. The traffic light at Carefree Highway and Cave Creek Road controls the traffic there, but there are no traffic lights or other traffic controls north of that intersection, and no street lights to help with safety. He realized street lights, which he thought would "help dramatically", and traffic lights are a big expense. He suggested that a reduction in the speed limit would be the cheapest and easiest way to alleviate the issue.
The Mayor asked Gary Neiss to address the issue. Mr. Neiss said that a Master Transportation Plan was generated in 2008 by traffic engineer Paul Basha, who evaluated the overall circulation system with planned future development taken into account. If a street is designed for 45 mph, artificially reducing the speed limit doesn't mean that people will adhere to that reduced limit. Enforcement would have to be increased. Some feel that there is already too much enforcement and some feel there is too little. There is no winning with the enforcement arm. Adjoining speed limit zones must be considered. A certain amount of transition area is required as limits are reduced. Consequences to neighboring jurisdictions must also be considered. Carefree only controls about 1-1/4 miles of Cave Creek Road in that area. Cave Creek controls the areas to the north of Stagecoach Pass and to the south by the intersection with Carefree Highway.
Mr. Fielder said the speeders are going 5-10 mph over the 45 mph speed limit, which makes matters worse. There has been further residential and commercial development since 2008, especially to the south with Walmart, Lowes and Home Depot. They have street lights which add ambient lighting and help with safety.
Mayor Peterson said that people tend to drive at speeds they believe to be safe, depending on street flatness, straightness and impediments along the sides, almost irrespective of the speed limit. Councilman Mike Farrar asked Maricopa County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) Captain Kip Rustenburg if there had been any accidents involving injuries along that stretch of Cave Creek Road. She said she couldn't recall any in the 3 years she has been here. The accidents have occurred at the intersection of Carefree Highway and Cave Creek Road. Mr. Neiss pointed out that the item was not agendized and could not be discussed further. The Mayor said it could be put on a future agenda if a need was felt to discuss it more. He asked Captain Rustenburg to bring any information on accidents along that stretch of road to Town Hall the following day. Mayor Peterson said he would follow up with Mr. Fielder.
I spoke next, saying that we live in Sentinel Rock, the adjacent development to the north of Canyon Creek. I have been on the board of our HOA since it began in 1997, and am in touch with representatives of other HOAs in our vicinity. The residents in both Carefree and Cave Creek place a high value on dark night skies, and the vast majority of them would consider the installation of street lights along the residential sections of Cave Creek Road to be unacceptable.
https://vimeo.com/203412465
Lyn Hitchon
Prepared by Carefree Truth
Visit our website at www.carefreetruth2.com If you know anyone who would like to be added to the Carefree Truth email list, please have them contact me. Feel free to share Carefree Truth with others on your list. Visit www.carefreeazbusinesses.com to see more info about businesses in Carefree. Please support our merchants.
Issue #548, February 10, 2017
20 year Carefree resident Robert Jacobson felt the bike lane project inadvertently created bad signage and dangerous highways on Cave Creek Road and on Tom Darlington Drive.
He said the medians are now filled with big trees, making those highways extremely dangerous. 2 trees have been scraped. He is unhappy with the unsafe highways. Mr. Jacobson submitted his document to the Town in December but thought it had "fallen through the cracks". He spoke with the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT). Money is available to fix the situation and he hoped it would be addressed soon.
Steven Hatcher, an applicant for the Planning and Zoning Commission who was in the audience, asked if Mr. Jacobson was saying the trees were too big and should be made smaller so cars hitting them would not be damaged. Mr. Jacobson said yes, and that the driver could be killed. Mr. Hatcher said the trees that had been hit prevented the cars from going across the traffic lanes and hitting oncoming cars, perhaps saving lives. Mr. Jabobson replied that was "another story". Mr. Hatcher said the trees prevent those potential fatalities.
Mayor Les Peterson asked Gary Neiss to comment. Mr. Neiss explained that the Town had tried to set up meetings with Mr. Jacobson but that Mr. Jacobson had wanted representatives from ADOT to be there. ADOT only controlled the streets while the bike lane project was ongoing. The Town reviewed Mr. Jacobson's concerns with ADOT and ADOT felt there were no safety issues. But the Town will continue to monitor the trees as they grow, and can remove them if they become a safety hazard. Trees have been removed in the past. Councilman Jim Van Allen said, "Don't remove any trees". Mayor Peterson suggested setting up a meeting with Mr. Jacobson to go out and look at the trees. Mr. Jacobson said, "Let's do it now". Mayor Peterson replied that he didn't have his calendar with him but said he would call Mr. Jacobson.
Canyon Creek Estates resident Tom Fielder had safety concerns about Cave Creek Road north of Carefree Highway. About a year ago, someone hit the Canyon Creek subdivision's decorative entry wall. Mr. Fielder spoke with Town staff but they didn't see a need to reduce the 45 mph speed limit at that time. He said there has been further residential development which accesses Cave Creek Road, and the addition of the bike paths, all of which he felt makes the speed limit very unsafe. The traffic light at Carefree Highway and Cave Creek Road controls the traffic there, but there are no traffic lights or other traffic controls north of that intersection, and no street lights to help with safety. He realized street lights, which he thought would "help dramatically", and traffic lights are a big expense. He suggested that a reduction in the speed limit would be the cheapest and easiest way to alleviate the issue.
The Mayor asked Gary Neiss to address the issue. Mr. Neiss said that a Master Transportation Plan was generated in 2008 by traffic engineer Paul Basha, who evaluated the overall circulation system with planned future development taken into account. If a street is designed for 45 mph, artificially reducing the speed limit doesn't mean that people will adhere to that reduced limit. Enforcement would have to be increased. Some feel that there is already too much enforcement and some feel there is too little. There is no winning with the enforcement arm. Adjoining speed limit zones must be considered. A certain amount of transition area is required as limits are reduced. Consequences to neighboring jurisdictions must also be considered. Carefree only controls about 1-1/4 miles of Cave Creek Road in that area. Cave Creek controls the areas to the north of Stagecoach Pass and to the south by the intersection with Carefree Highway.
Mr. Fielder said the speeders are going 5-10 mph over the 45 mph speed limit, which makes matters worse. There has been further residential and commercial development since 2008, especially to the south with Walmart, Lowes and Home Depot. They have street lights which add ambient lighting and help with safety.
Mayor Peterson said that people tend to drive at speeds they believe to be safe, depending on street flatness, straightness and impediments along the sides, almost irrespective of the speed limit. Councilman Mike Farrar asked Maricopa County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) Captain Kip Rustenburg if there had been any accidents involving injuries along that stretch of Cave Creek Road. She said she couldn't recall any in the 3 years she has been here. The accidents have occurred at the intersection of Carefree Highway and Cave Creek Road. Mr. Neiss pointed out that the item was not agendized and could not be discussed further. The Mayor said it could be put on a future agenda if a need was felt to discuss it more. He asked Captain Rustenburg to bring any information on accidents along that stretch of road to Town Hall the following day. Mayor Peterson said he would follow up with Mr. Fielder.
I spoke next, saying that we live in Sentinel Rock, the adjacent development to the north of Canyon Creek. I have been on the board of our HOA since it began in 1997, and am in touch with representatives of other HOAs in our vicinity. The residents in both Carefree and Cave Creek place a high value on dark night skies, and the vast majority of them would consider the installation of street lights along the residential sections of Cave Creek Road to be unacceptable.
https://vimeo.com/203412465
Lyn Hitchon
Prepared by Carefree Truth
Visit our website at www.carefreetruth2.com If you know anyone who would like to be added to the Carefree Truth email list, please have them contact me. Feel free to share Carefree Truth with others on your list. Visit www.carefreeazbusinesses.com to see more info about businesses in Carefree. Please support our merchants.