1976-11-09 - Laserfiche WebLink

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3 .e The Three Options- A Traffic Perspective In its resolution the Council directed that preliminary plans for three options be drawn. Those three plans are attached and labeled Alternate 1, Alternate 2, and Alternate 3. Alternate l: Cul-de-sac, Palmer Drive Alternate one is the option which clearly disconnects the residential area from the shopping center for purposes of eliminating pass-through traffic. For this reason the following effects of this option are offered. Some of these effects to a lesser extent might be anticipated with Alternate 2 and 3. Closing Palmer Drive to the Pike Lake area will result in most of the present traffic on Robin Lane being diverted either to the north via 14th Street or to the south via Pike Lake Drive in order to reach Silver Lake Road and the commercial area. Observation and general knowledge of the area suggest that since most of the present traffic on Palmer Drive is outbound it would normally choose a southern route-wia Pike Lake Drive, the shopping center parking lot and Palmer Drive as an alternate to the present Palmer Drive route exit. Some vehicles are probably already using this route. As much as 70% of the traffic now using palmer Drive might use this southern route. That route, however, will require southbound traffic to detour through the shopping center parking lot to Palmer Drive. This involves additional maneuvering and delay at the Pike Lake Drive/shopping center entrance, at the shopping center exit on Palmer Drive and at the Palmer Drive/Silver Lake Road intersection. The delays which could result from this route might result in more trips being directed along 14th Street to Silver Lake Road and then south. While this route is longer in distance, for many motorists it might be shorter in time and more convenient than the Pike Lake Drive route if significant problems develop there because of heavy usage. There appear to be at least three principal problems with closing Palmer Drive. One of the principal drawbacks would be the likely increase in traffic through the shopping center parking lot. The poor circulation pattern in the area near the Silver Lake Road entrance to the shopping center might result in an increased number of accidents in the parking lot if a large amount of additional traffic uses this route. The highest volume of outbound traffic, however, occurs in the morning prior to the shopping center opening. Some objection to this increased traffic might come from the shopping center owner. The Fire Department has also raised an objection to the closing of the road. While they point out that they normally enter the area on Pike Lake Drive from either 14th Street or Silver Lake Road, they also note that there are advantages to having alternate routes in case of