Title
Discuss the Mecartney Road/Island Drive Recommended Roundabout Concept and the Citywide Roundabout Analysis
Body
To: Honorable Chair and Members of the Commission on Persons with Disabilities
BACKGROUND
As stated in the City's Capital Budget for 2015-17, the goal of the Mecartney Road/Island Drive intersection project is to improve this wide and busy intersection for all modes of transportation by using best practices to enhance safety and mobility. In 2021, City staff and Kittelson & Associates, Inc. (Kittelson) considered a range of potential improvement options including a roundabout, reduced footprint all-way stop, "do nothing" and traffic signal. Based on an analysis and community outreach in late 2021 and early 2022, the City staff/consultant team recommends a roundabout concept for the Mecartney Road/Island Drive intersection, which is expected to best improve safety and operations, and also would reduce the footprint of the intersection relative to existing conditions, and would provide landscaping, art and flood reduction opportunities. In March, the Transportation Commission voted unanimously to recommend City Council approval the roundabout concept. City staff is requesting City Council approval at the June 21 meeting. The project webpage is www.alamedaca.gov/MecartneyIsland
As shown in the Mecartney/Island intersection project, roundabouts can be an important tool in the implementation of the Vision Zero policy, which prioritizes the reduction of fatal and severe injury crashes to zero. Roundabouts reduce the types of crashes where people are seriously hurt or killed by 90 percent when compared to conventional stop-controlled and signalized intersections. Roundabouts result in lower vehicle speeds, generally 15-25 miles per hour, around the roundabout. Crashes that occur will be less severe because of this reduced speed. Pedestrians are generally safer at roundabouts, and are faced with simpler decisions at a time. Roundabouts ...
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