For over a decade speed cushions keep salinas residents safe
Salinas, CA addressed rising speeding concerns and enhances traffic safety using Traffic Logix speed cushions to effectively slow down drivers while allowing emergency vehicles to pass.
The Challenge
Salinas, CA, located in Monterey County, is a vibrant city known for its agricultural richness and diverse community. With a population approaching 160,000, Salinas is nestled in the fertile Salinas Valley, surrounded by rolling hills and agricultural fields. The city’s landscape is a mix of residential neighborhoods, commercial districts, and expansive farms.
Over a decade ago, in recognition of increased traffic volume and speeding and in response to resident requests, the city developed a traffic management system to evaluate and respond to speeding and cut-through traffic concerns. They sought to develop a comprehensive program with effective, efficient solutions that would slow speeders down and protect Salinas residents from the perils of speeding and dangerous driving.
The Solution
The city developed the Neighborhood Traffic Management Plan (NTMP), which includes clearly delineated steps to help safeguard Salinas residents. Initiated by citizen requests, the process includes a neighbourhood petition, thorough traffic study, a points system to identify high risk factors such as the schools or collision history, and the implementation of traffic calming solutions where they’re needed most.
The NTMP toolbox includes a variety of solutions and incorporates Traffic Logix speed cushions as an integral component in the creation of safer neighborhood streets. While the toolbox offers residents a variety of ways to slow cars on their streets, speed cushions are the solution that is most requested by residents.
The recycled rubber speed cushions offer an environmentally friendly solution that slows cars while allowing emergency vehicles to pass unhindered. They are designed as three small speed humps with spaces in between.
The rubber units provide more consistency than asphalt since they are pre-shaped. They also easily accommodate street resurfacing and can be removed and reinstalled. The rubber speed cushions are simple to install and help to reduce speed and lessen the instance and severity of traffic collisions.
To date, Salinas has installed dozens of sets of Traffic Logix speed cushions to slow speeders and ensure that drivers follow posted speed limits. Some have been down as long as a decade with little to no maintenance required.
The Benefits
Once speed cushions are installed on Salinas streets, they are left in place for around two years before data is collected again to compare speeds and volumes prior to installation. The city has seen excellent results from the speed cushions with an approximate 14% reduction in the 85th percentile speeds. This is similar to what other studies have found and congruent with their expected results of the traffic calming devices.
Gerardo Rodriguez, Assistant Engineer in the City of Salinas Traffic and Transportation Division, is pleased with how the speed cushions have held up over time, noting that they “pretty much maintain themselves.”
He also noted that residents are grateful when speed cushions are installed in response to their requests for safety devices and that they “really do see the reduction in speeds.” And while Salinas gets a plethora of complaints about speeding, he noted that “we’ve never had residents complain after the speed cushions were installed. No one has come back and said hey, we’re still seeing speeding.”
