Dunwoody conducts Pedestrian Safety Action Plan - Council to look at funding strategy to match recommendations.

Full Report

List with Recommendations

The priority list, which identified locations for further mitigation and priority, is shown in
Table 3 above. The prioritized order and treatments were developed based on data collected from visits to the field, laneage/geometry, and cost in addition to the FHWA guidelines score. The highest priority “N” on N Peachtree Rd near Chesnut Elementary warrants a Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB) because it provides a pedestrian refuge island and additional warning for vehicular traffic. In most other cases, the roadway widths and geometry provide enough space for pedestrian refuge islands for high vehicular and pedestrian volume areas. In addition to the RRFB and pedestrian refuge island treatments, other recommendations have been made in Table 3 for improvements to existing crosswalks for crosswalks that warrant pedestrian facility enhancements and others that warrant a marked crosswalk only.

These additional enhancements and maintenance include striping stop bars, widening pedestrian  sidewalk pads, removing and replacing existing crosswalk striping, installing new sidewalks, complying with ADA guidelines, adding pedestrian and advanced motorist warning signs, and using
police enforcement to slow traffic and enforce parking codes. Table 3 shows the priority rankings and the treatment recommendations for each intersection.

Pedestrian Safety is important to the Dunwoody Police Department, so please be warned and educated as enforcement is about to start with school starting soon.

Facebook Post

Flyer - pdf

Jaywalk Laws and other technicalities.

Please Stop Speeding on Dunwoody Residential Streets

I get lots of email requesting city services and 99% of them I forward directly to the respective Department head for review & consideration while copying the City Manager so that he is aware of needs & pulse of the community.  The City Council's role is overall city policy but I am always happy to help residents get the operational services they want and need, but that primary responsibility actually goes to the City Manager and the respective staff.

In the last 24 hours I received the following requests: I had a request for new sidewalks near a busy street for a community who has been waiting for quite some time, a request to improve a neighbors house through forced code enforcement, a request for improved striping on newly paved roads, a request to improve possible safety defects in one of our parks, a request for a newspaper interview, a request for enforcement of a garage sale that has been going on every weekend for months and finally the note below (with the photo shown above with Gwinnett tags) requesting that the City of Dunwoody find a way to calm the traffic on North Peachtree Road.

Typically, I would forward this last message to Police Chief Grogan and Public Works who might do speed enforcement and explore other options to slow the traffic.  Since I also receive messages regarding tickets being given on N Peachtree Road; I know ticketing alone does not work, therefore I have decided to print the residents request for you to read for yourself.

Please do me a favor, watch the video posted below and the next time you drive on N Peachtree Road between Mt. Vernon and Peeler, please pay very close attention at the speed and try to stay under the maximum limit of 25 mph.  (My wife has a hard time doing this down the winding hills and has therefore started to use the brakes and cruise control.)  Imagine if hundreds of vehicles took it upon themselves to stick to the strict speed limit, on that road they would actually be changing the mind set (somewhat force-ably) of others around them to also drive slower too.  As far as the other items, they are all being reviewed by city staff and fyi the new asphalt through out the city will be getting new highly reflective professional striping and new crosswalks but please patient since we are waiting until all paving is done to do it all at once.  The striping on the streets now is only temporary.

Dear Councilman Heneghan,

I am not sure if you are my councilman, but I receive your blog and you seem to doing a great job for Dunwoody. I live at 5### North Peachtree Road, and I believe it is long overdue for this City to look at two things for North Peachtree Road.

1) Calm the speed using anything but humps…Circles narrow spots, anything.

2) Make North Peachtree Road a unattractive alternative to Tilly Mill or getting from Mt. Vernon to I-285 area. If you do item one then I hope item 2 takes care of itself.

The attached photo was taken today when some speeding teenagers lost control and overturned almost into Kingsley Lake. People cutting through this neighborhood and speeding are going to get people killed. This happened at 3:30PM Friday. Imagine if children walking home from Kingsley School were hit or pool goers at Kingsley Pool. When I moved here the speed on North Peachtree was 35. We got it to 25 and added some stop signs after a local girl was killed on the road.

If there is anything you can do, It would be appreciated. Anything I can do to help, I will. Thanks,

North Peachtree Roard is max 25 mph - Slow Down

Trick or Treat Safety and the latest On the Beat, Dunwoody Police newsletter.

Shown below is the second issue of the Dunwoody Police - On the Beat newsletter which has good insights on Trick or Treating, Personal Safety Perspectives and an update on Code Enforcement.

In a separate e-mail from PEDS that I will share here, I was informed that according to a CDC repor  four times as many young pedestrians (ages 5 - 14) are killed on Halloween than any other evening of the year. On Halloween, children dressed in dark colors and in costumes that sometimes cover their eyes walk the streets at dusk when many adults are heading off to parties.  While young, excited trick-or-treaters may forget the rules of the road and be oblivious to the hazards, we as drivers must be vigilant.

"Tricks" for Drivers:

• Drive well below the posted speed limit.
• Don't use a cell phone while driving through neighborhoods. A single distraction could be tragic.
• Be extra alert when pulling in and out of driveways.
• Watch for children darting across streets, especially between parked cars. Do not pass other vehicles that have stopped in the roadway. They could be dropping off children.

"Tricks" for Parents:

• Make sure drivers can see the children. Give kids flashlights and glow sticks. Dress kids in bright colors or use reflective tape on their costumes.
• Use makeup, rather than masks, so children have a clear, unobstructed view of their surroundings.
• Be sure children know how to cross a street: look left, right, and left again before crossing.
• Instruct children to stay on sidewalks and to cross only at corners or crosswalks.
• Accompany your children as they trick or treat.
Dunwoody Police - One the Beat - Oct Issue

Two Millage Rate Public Meetings & a long agenda to wrap up a Monday evening in Dunwoody.

Monday, June 15th
Dunwoody City Hall
41 Perimeter Center East
Dunwoody, GA 30346

11:45 am Agenda & Public Hearing on Millage Rate

6:30 pm Agenda & Public Hearing on Millage Rate
Amend DeKalb CVB Agreement - minor correction

7:00 pm Agenda

• Boyken Status Report & Proclamation
• May Financial Report.
• Discussion of Dunwoody Convention & Visitors Bureau.
  Audio from May 22, Dunwoody Chamber Forum on DCVB
  Audio from March 16, City Council Meeting
• FIRST READ: Ordinance to amend Chapter 4: Alcohol Beverages
• Discussion of nominees for Construction Board of Appeals.
  Elliott Usher, Howard Karchmer, Monroe Brock, Dick Drake, Charles Juray
• Discussion of nominees for Alcohol License Review Board.
  Worth Wells, Beverly Wingate, Brian Tate, Steve Zisser, Doug Thompson
• Speed Reduction Results from PEDS.
• Discussion of funding to purchase radar signs. (Should the PTA's share in the cost of these signs or should they be funded entirely by city? Highly unlikely DCSS will contribute. $4,000 each.)
• Discussion of pothole repair process and procedures.
• Adopt-a-Spot Program. Partner with DHA
  
• Discussion on authorizing municipal officers to be eligible for the city’s health and dental insurance upon payment of 100% of the premium.
• Discussion of award of contract for codification of ordinances.
• Discussion of the Community Council.
• Discussion of land use applicant attendance requirements.
• Discussion of land use public notice.
• Discussion of special events policies.

Do driver feedback speed limit signs impact speed compliance? We will find out on Thursday.

Radarsign Demonstration and Media Event

Thursday April 30 @ 11:30 am

Chesnut Charter Elementary School
(south parking lot)
4576 N. Peachtree Rd.,
Dunwoody, GA 30338

A driver feedback sign has been temporarily installed in front of Chesnut Charter Elementary. It is a speed reduction demonstration project coordinated by PEDS, metro Atlanta's pedestrian advocacy organization, in partnership with the City of Dunwoody and the Governor's Office of Highway Safety.

If you are concerned about the speeding problem on N. Peachtree Rd or other locations within Dunwoody, I would like to invite you to attend our media event on April 30 at 11:30 AM at Chesnut where you can learn of this new technology, speak to City officials and the news media.

Speeding in school zones and neighborhoods is a serious and pervasive problem. Speed humps, one of the cheapest traffic calming devices, are also the crudest and most controversial. Most jurisdictions prohibit them on collector streets, where speeding cut-through traffic is rampant. Driver feedback signs are effective and affordable and are being used in more and more metro Atlanta jurisdictions.

Hit at 20 mph, only 5% of pedestrians are killed.
Hit at 30 mph, 45% of pedestrians are killed.
Hit at 40 mph, 90% of pedestrians are killed.

A little extra speed makes a big impact. Metro Atlanta drivers hit 4 pedestrians every day, injuring about 1,500 per year and killing nearly 80.

QUESTIONS? Contact Michael Orta, PEDS Director of Community Education at 404-522-3747 or collaborate@peds.org.

Biking makes sense therefore planning and infrastructure improvements should follow.

My boys and I participated in the 7 mile Bike Ride Around Dunwoody presented by the Dunwoody Preservation Trust and the proceeds from the ride were donated to the City and held in a special fund that will be used to designate bike lanes here in the City of Dunwoody.

With a little planning and wise infrastructure improvements the City of Dunwoody could be a much improved walkable and bikeable community which could connect us to our neighboring cities and the world beyond. The City of Dunwoody is still in its infancy but long term goals are being set and now we also need to be planning on how these goals will be fulfilled.

The U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Mr. Ray LaHood has made bicycle transportation a priority and he details on his blog the financial backing that this administration is putting towards the issue. The City of Dunwoody has already put forward a $500,000 grant application with Kingsley Elementary on the related issue of Safe Routes to Schools and will be exploring the issue of Complete Streets in the coming months as part of our Comprehensive Planning Process which will assist us in applying for bicycle related infrastructure improvements.

Ray LaHood blog entry...

Bicycling was one of the earliest beneficiaries of stimulus funding, with portions of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act explicitly devoted to bicycling, and this department has been very active in getting that funding out the door. States must spend 3 percent of their allocation on the Transportation Enhancements program, which is a primary source of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure funding. The remainder of the “highway” money also creates an opportunity to build complete streets. All of the highway funding is flexible, and bicycle and pedestrian projects are eligible. The 3 percent in Transportation Enhancements is a floor not a ceiling. 30 percent of a state’s allocation is sub-allocated to urbanized areas, where commuting by bicycle is most likely.

$3.1 billion is provided for the Energy Efficiency and Block Grant Program, which provides formula funding to cities, counties, and states to undertake a range of energy efficiency activities. One eligible use of funding is for bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. $1 billion is provided for the Community Development Block Grants program, which provides formula funding to cities and counties that meet certain criteria to undertake community improvement activities. One eligible use of funding is for bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure.

Safety and connectivity are also large goals of the biking community therefore I am happy to promote the following two items.

• Georgia Bike Sense: A Guide for Cyclists and Motorists Safety

The Guide is intended to teach cyclists and motorists how to safely and legally share the road. It provides guidance on technique, rules of the road, trail etiquette, safety and also contains a listing of local, state and national bicycle resources.

To receive a booklet in the mail, please e-mail bikeped@dot.ga.gov, or call the State Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator at (404) 631-1778. Due to budget constraints, the Department requires that you arrange to pick up large quantities of the guides at one of our depositories around the state. http://www.dot.state.ga.us/travelingingeorgia/bikepedestrian/Pages/Safety.aspx

• Connecting Dunwoody to Roswell with a bridge

Proposed Bicycle/Pedestrian Bridge at Morgan Falls
Public Meeting: Thursday, April 30, 2009
7 - 9 PM Chattahoochee Nature Center, 9135 Willeo Road, Roswell

Dunwoody Elementary named and Speeding Traffic concerns.

During the public comment of the Dunwoody City Council, Councilwoman Adrian Bonser announced that the new 4th & 5th Grade Elementary School on Womack will be named Dunwoody Elementary, the colors will be Light & Dark Blue and the team mascot will be the Tigers.

The meeting was rather dry except for the traffic calming issue whereby the affected community stood in unison at the meeting demanding that the council take action thereby allowing the residents to vote on the matter. Speeding cut through traffic was the big issue with the residents knowing that the problem will get worse come August with the new school opening. The matter passed unanimously by the council and after the horror stories I heard from the residents, I believe I know a new stretch of sidewalk that was added to my wish list of future improvements.

Speeding, Speeding Tickets, Speed Detection were big issues tonight and I would like to ask that everyone please be mindful of their driving habits.

http://www.youtube.com

Below is the audio from the meeting. Agenda

04132009_1.mp3 Start of meeting

04132009_2.mp3 Land development Chap 14 minor cleanup

04132009_3.mp3 Village Creek Traffic Calming

04132009_4.mp3 Probation - Car Wash - End.

Radar Speed Limit Sign - to be tested in Dunwoody on North Peachtree Road

It doesn't happen often but I stepped away from the internet for about a week (except for a work Blackberry which was reviewed mostly after hours). The family & I had the pleasure of getting out of town for Spring Break visiting St. Simon's Island and had a very nice time.

Sign Announcement from PEDS

Speeding in school zones and neighborhoods is a serious and pervasive problem. Speed humps, one of the cheapest traffic calming devices, are also the crudest and most controversial. Most jurisdictions prohibit them on collector streets, where speeding cut-through traffic is rampant. Radar speed signs are effective and affordable and are being used in more and more metro Atlanta jurisdictions. Come see why.

I am very proud to announce that on April 30th at 11:30 am at Chestnut Charter Elementary School south parking lot, there will be a public demonstration and media event announcing the results of a two-week demonstration project aimed at reducing school zone speeding and discuss the tool used to deter speeders.

A sign like the one above will be installed in the coming weeks on North Peachtree Road and if the project is successful other signs may be ordered by the city. Sponsored by PEDS, the City of Dunwoody, the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety and Radarsign.