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HomeMy WebLinkAboutIR 7102 INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 7102 March 25, 1986 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council o Subject: SCHOOL ZONE SIGNING POLICY On November 8, 1985, Carmel ina Marie Val deras, a fourth grade South Hi Mount Elementary student, was fatally injured when struck by a car while she was crossing in the 2300 block of Clover Lane between W. C. Stripling Middle School and South Hi-Mount Elementary School . This incident occurred approximately 25 feet south of the 4000 block of Coll inwood Avenue at 3:40 p.m. The location is outside the area marked and signed as a school cross- ing for the elementary school . The elementary students designated crossing for Clover Lane is located at Birchman Avenue adjacent to the school grounds, some 900 feet south of Col linwood Avenue. This crossing is within a flashing 20 MPH school zone. An adult crossing guard also supervises the children crossing Clover Lane at that location. There is also a marked and signed crosswalk for W. C. Stripling Middle School students to cross Clover Lane at Byers Avenue, approximately 600 feet north of Collinwood. The crossing for the middle school students is not in a reduced speed school zone since the policy of Transportation and Public Works Department is to install such zones only for elementary schools. The parents of children attending South l4i-Mount Elementary School , as well as the residents in the neighborhood,- responded to this tragic event by circulating and signing a petition requesting the City of Fort 'Worth to extend the present school zone to include the portion of Clover Lane from 1-30 (West Freeway) to LaFayette Avenue, a distance of some 2,850 feet. The present limits of the school zone is from 1-30 to just south of El Campo Avenue, a distance of approximately 900 feet. On January 22, 1986, Mrs. Valderas and other neighborhood citizens met with Mayor Bolen and the City Traffic Engineer, Walter Cooper, to present their ideas on extending the flashing school zone. As a result of the citizens request, the Transportation and Public Works Department conducted a study of existing school areas in the City. The review of present conditions in Fort Worth reveals there are 86 elementary schools with 152 reduced speed school zones, 41 of which are supplemented with flashing beacons. There are 18 middle schools in the City. There 'are six (6) locations where elementary and middle school campuses are in close proximity to each other. In five of these instances the middle school students use crossings at school zones because of their location adjacent to an elementary school . A review and discussion of the Traffic Engineering Division' s policy, pro- cedures and standards by representatives of the Fort Worth Independent School District (FWISD) and the Traffic Division of the Police Department indicated that they believed the current policy and procedure for signing and marking of school areas was appropri ate, but that more detailed infor- mation should be made available to clarify the different types of safety measures installed for the various school related problems. The matter of L ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No_.. 7102 -P.2 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council March 25, 1986 Subject: SCHOOL ZONE SIGNING POLICY 107 5 providing reduced speed zones for middle school s was speci f ically discussed. Based upon local experience, it appears that middle school students do not benefit from posted school zones with adult crossing guards. In fact school administration and police officials both pointed out that due to the nature of students in this age group, they tend to cross on their own accord or go to some other area, unmarked and unsafe, to cross The Police Traffic Division also indicated if additional speed zones fo; middle schools were added to the existing 152 zones, their ability to patrol these zones at elementary schools with existing officers would be impaired, thereby reducing their effectiveness. There would also be additional costs for the Police Department to hire and train new crossing guards and additional patrol officers. Traffic Engineering would also need an additional $90,000 for signing and marking the middle schools with school zones. Consensus was, however, that some benefit to elementary school students might be derived in areas where middle schools were in close proximity to elementary schools. Some elementary students go to the nearby middle school campuses to meet older brothers, sisters or friends attending the middle school . Caution must be exercised however, in extend- ing the length of school zones. Motorists regain higher speeds in a 20 MPH zone when they perceive it to be too long. It would be beneficial however, to extend an elementary school zone to cover middle schools in instances where the campuses are close together -and the likelihood for interrelation between the two schools exists. Adiscussion on the existing conditions in the City indicated some concern about the current signing around elementary schools. There is a need to upgrade most of the elementary school speed zones and crosswalks with advanced crosswalk signs to standards recently amended in the Federal Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) . Everyone involved in the meeting understands and agrees that it is more important to improve the signing at the elementary school . As a result of this meeting, the Fort Worth Independent School District Administration, the Traffic Division of the Police Department, and the Transportation and Public Works Department have developed the following recommendations. RECOMMENDATIONS: 1. The Transportation and Public Works Department will clarify its guide- lines and standards for various types of traffic control in school areas by providing a written policy statement outlining the criteria necessary for each degree of control and illustrating the signing to be used for each. 2. The Traffic Engineering Division will immediately extend the existing flashing school zone on Clover Lane northward from 1-30 to approxi- mately 250 feet north of Bryce Avenue. This zone will include the L ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER I FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL. REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL. MEMBERS No. 7102 - p.3 ' c,`4^RTIA'. March 25, 1986 �Q4�oRr,�o To the Mayor and Members of the City Council `rexAg. Subject: SCHOOL ZONE SIGNING POLICY tpt3 crosswalks for students crossing Clover Lane at South Hi-Mount Elementary School and at W. C. Stripling Middle School . 3. The Transportation and Public Works Department propose to upgrade the signing at approximately 120 elementary school zone and crosswalk locations in the City. A decision package will be submitted as part of the Department' s budget for 1986-87 in the amount of $45,000 to accomplish this task. 4. The Traffic Engineering Division will also upgrade 22 existing 20 MPH school zones by installing fl asking beacons to supplement the signing. It is proposed to upgrade five (5) to seven (7) locations per year with financing provided by current bond funds at a cost of about $7,500 per location. The result of these actions will improve the City of Fort Worth' s ability to continue to provide an effective school safety program for our citizens. The Transportation and Public Works Department will implement these measures in a timely manner. Additional information will be provided at your request. ugl as Harman 7 City Manager DH:du ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS