I am skeptical of the current plans for the Freeport Boulevard Safety and Mobility Project.
1. The decision to preserve two traffic lanes in each direction should be revisited. Peak hour southbound traffic at Oregon Dr is 1028, which is the upper end of single-lane capacity; single-lane sections of Folsom Blvd and J St in East Sacramento carry about this much traffic. Reduction to a single traffic lane south of Sutterville would provide space for the bikeway, parking, and trees. This improves the biking and walking environment, make crossing the street simple, reduce traffic speed, and eliminates the need for many of the expensive new signals.
2. The intersections at the southern Sutterville Rd and Fruitridge Rd are are essentially unchanged aside from some green paint; they will remain extremely uncomfortable to use. One version of the plan even stated that the Fruitridge intersection is overbuilt, and yet is was not redesigned! Requiring cyclists to merge through high speed right-turning traffic is unacceptable. The lanes will be a failure as a result. We can and must do better.
Freeport Boulevard between Sutterville and 35th Ave should be an inviting main street for the surrounding neighborhoods, not a highway. The community feedback reinforces this and was unfortunately largely ignored. The plan, as it stands, should not be funded.
I am skeptical of the current plans for the Freeport Boulevard Safety and Mobility Project.
1. The decision to preserve two traffic lanes in each direction should be revisited. Peak hour southbound traffic at Oregon Dr is 1028, which is the upper end of single-lane capacity; single-lane sections of Folsom Blvd and J St in East Sacramento carry about this much traffic. Reduction to a single traffic lane south of Sutterville would provide space for the bikeway, parking, and trees. This improves the biking and walking environment, make crossing the street simple, reduce traffic speed, and eliminates the need for many of the expensive new signals.
2. The intersections at the southern Sutterville Rd and Fruitridge Rd are are essentially unchanged aside from some green paint; they will remain extremely uncomfortable to use. One version of the plan even stated that the Fruitridge intersection is overbuilt, and yet is was not redesigned! Requiring cyclists to merge through high speed right-turning traffic is unacceptable. The lanes will be a failure as a result. We can and must do better.
Freeport Boulevard between Sutterville and 35th Ave should be an inviting main street for the surrounding neighborhoods, not a highway. The community feedback reinforces this and was unfortunately largely ignored. The plan, as it stands, should not be funded.