Fremont City Council Meeting: 02/20/24 07:00 PM
3300 Capitol Avenue Div/Dept: Public Works
Fremont, CA 94538 Category: Code Adoptions & Amendments
SCHEDULED
Sponsors:
COUNCIL STAFF REPORT (ID # 5082) DOC ID: 5082
Updated: 2/16/2024 11:21 AM by Susan Gauthier Page 1
UPDATING SPEED LIMITS ON CITY STREETS - Public Hearing (Published Notice) to Conduct First Reading and Introduce an Ordinance Amending Fremont Municipal Code Section 10.05.1000, Declaring the Speed Limits to be Posted upon Designated Streets in the City; Approve the Engineering and Traffic Survey; and Find Actions are Exempt from CEQA Review
Contact Persons:
Name: Eric Hu Hans Larsen
Title: Principal Transportation Engineer Public Works Director Div/Dept: Public Works Public Works
Phone: 510-494-4542 510-494-4722
E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Executive Summary: The purpose of this report is to introduce an ordinance to update posted speed limits on designated streets citywide. An updated Engineering and Traffic Survey (”Survey”) has been prepared which validates the existing posted speed limit along 141 city roadway segments and allows for reducing the posted speed limit for 30 roadway segments. Having a current Survey is necessary to allow the Police Department to continue radar speed enforcement in the City.
BACKGROUND:
Speed Limit Setting Legislative Framework
The California Vehicle Code (“CVC”) Section 22352 establishes default speed limits for vehicles upon highways, as specified. CVC Sections 22357 and 22358 authorize the City to adjust default speed limits on streets and roads under its jurisdiction based upon certain findings determined by a Survey. Per CVC 40802, the Survey must consider prevailing speeds and road conditions, among other factors, and must be performed every five to seven years. The Survey period may be extended to 14 years based on a registered engineer determination that no significant changes in roadway or traffic conditions have occurred. Local speed limits must be posted and supported by a Survey to enable the Fremont Police Department to enforce the speed limits with radar and other electronic devices.
The requirements and guidelines for performing the Survey are set forth in CVC Section 627 and in the California Manual for setting Speed Limits (“Manual”). The Manual states that speed limits are generally established at or near the 85th percentile free flow vehicle operating speed, which is defined as the speed at or below which 85th percent of traffic is moving during uncongested conditions. More recently, Assembly Bill 43 allows cities, after completing a Survey, to reduce speeds an additional five miles per hour if the roadway has been designated as a safety corridor or the roadway is adjacent to a land use or facility that generates high concentrations of bicyclists or pedestrians, especially those from vulnerable groups such as children, seniors, persons with disabilities, and the unhoused.
Current Speed Management Actions
Council Staff Report (ID # 5082) Meeting of February 20, 2024 Updated: 2/16/2024 11:21 AM by Susan Gauthier Page 2
The City Council adopted a Vision Zero traffic safety policy in 2015, a Vision Zero Action Plan in 2016, and renewed Vision Zero Action Plan in 2021. A key objective in the Action Plans is to tame high-speed arterial streets. Speed is an essential aspect of traffic safety, as higher speeds increase both the likelihood and severity of crashes. Higher speeds mean drivers require more time to react and longer distances to brake and crashes have an exponentially greater transfer of energy. The chance of a pedestrian being killed when hit by a vehicle increases from 35 percent to 68 percent when vehicle speed increases just 5 mph from 35 mph to 40 mph.
The City has undertaken a number of efforts to manage speed since adopting its Vision Zero policy, including reconfiguring roadways with narrowed lanes and tighter intersections; installing radar feedback signs citywide; installing speed lumps in school zones and neighborhoods; installing additional stop signs and yield markers; implementing school zone projects based on Safe Routes to School plans prepared for every school in the City; implementing signal coordination timing along high-speed corridors that optimizes traffic flow at slower speeds; and targeted police enforcement. With these actions, the City has seen a notable reduction in severe injury and fatal crashes. However, a significant factor in recent severe injury and fatal crashes continues to be reckless speeding.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS:
Proposed New Speed Limits
The City last conducted a citywide Survey in 2015, and the resulting recommended speed limits were approved by Council and codified in the Fremont Municipal Code Section 10.05.1000. The 2015 Survey expired in late 2023 and needs to be updated.
It is noted that in 2019, the City conducted a “mid-cycle” Survey update for roadway segments which were subject to speed management improvements that had been completed as part of the City’s Vision Zero Program. That Survey facilitated reducing speed limits for 38 road segments.
Changes to roadway and traffic conditions have occurred over the past seven years, which called for an updated Survey of posted speed limits along local streets. The City’s consultant, Kimley-Horn and Associates, conducted the new Survey between Winter 2022 and Summer 2023. The new Survey validates the existing posted speed limit for 141 roadway segments, while recommending a decrease in posted speed limit for 30 roadway segments. The 2023 Survey does not recommend any increase in posted speed limit in the City. A copy of the 2023 Survey is on file for review in the office of the City Clerk as required by Fremont Municipal Code Section 10.05.1000.
The City’s speed limits along local streets are codified in the Fremont Municipal Code Section
10.05.1000. The following table summarizes the 30 street segments with recommended decreases in speed limits based on the 2023 Survey.
Street Segments with a Proposed Decrease to the Existing Speed Limit
Street Name Segment Existing
Speed Limit
Recommended
Speed Limit
Council Staff Report (ID # 5082) Meeting of February 20, 2024 Updated: 2/16/2024 11:21 AM by Susan Gauthier Page 3
1. Albrae Street Stewart to Christy 35 30
2. Alvarado Boulevard Deep Creek to City Limits 45 40
3. Argonaut Way Mowry to Walnut 30 25
4. Auto Mall Parkway Westerly end to Boyce 45 40
5. Boscell Road Auto Mall to Bunche 35 30
6. Bunche Drive Christy to Cushing 35/30 30/25
7. Christy Street Auto Mall to Brandin 35 30
8. Country Drive Paseo Padre to Stivers 30 25
9. Curie Street Christy to Boscell 30 25
10. Deep Creek Road Alvarado to Paseo Padre 35 30
11. Dumbarton Circle Paseo Padre to Kaiser 35 30
12. Dusterberry Way Central to Thornton 35 30
13. Farwell Drive Brophy to Flamingo 30 25
14. Fremont Boulevard Blacow to Auto Mall 40 35
15. Hansen Avenue Blacow to Yolo 35 30
16. Isherwood Way Paseo Padre to City Limits 35 30
17. Kaiser Drive Ardenwood to Paseo Padre 40 30
18. Liberty Street Stevenson to Walnut 30 25
19. Mowry Avenue Paseo Padre to Fremont 40 35
20. Mowry Avenue Fremont to Argonaut 40 35
21. Overacker Avenue Mowry to L-Curve 35 25
22. Page Avenue Kato to Milmont 35 30
23. Paseo Padre Parkway Decoto to Thornton 45 40
24. Shinn Street Peralta to Von Euw 30 25
25. Stevenson Boulevard Mission to Civic Center 40 35
26. Stevenson Boulevard Blacow to I-880 40 35
27. Stevenson Boulevard I-880 to Westerly End 40 35
28. Technology Drive Auto Mall to Grimmer 35 30
29. Thornton Avenue Fremont to Easterly End 40 35
30. Walnut Avenue Fremont to Paseo Padre 35 30
Staff has prepared a draft Ordinance shown in Attachment 1 that amends Section
10.05.1000 of Chapter 10.05 of Title 10 of the Fremont Municipal Code to adopt the speed limit changes identified above.
FISCAL IMPACT: There is no cost associated with the approval of the Survey and adoption of the proposed ordinance. There will be minimal cost for purchasing and updating speed signs for the locations where changes to the posted speed limits are required. Funding for the replacement of speed limit signs is part of the City’s existing operating budget for street maintenance.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: This ordinance is exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), in that it is not a project which has the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment.
ATTACHMENTS:
• Draft Ordinance Amendment (Speed Limit)
Council Staff Report (ID # 5082) Meeting of February 20, 2024 Updated: 2/16/2024 11:21 AM by Susan Gauthier Page 4
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. Hold a Public Hearing.
2. Find that the recommended actions are exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), in that it is not a project which has the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment.
3. Approve the Engineering and Traffic Survey for Speed Limits Final Report dated December 2023, prepared by Kimley-Horn and Associates, which identifies the engineering basis for determining the new speed limits in the City.
4. Introduce an ordinance amending Section 10.05.1000 of the Fremont Municipal Code to update established speed limits on City roadways.