[Durham INC] [pac3] Fwd: What is up with Durham drivers?

[Reyn Bowman]

Keep in mind that more than half of the drivers on Durham's roads don't live in Durham!

Sent from my iPhone

On Mar 14, 2011, at 1:38 PM, Phillip Bost <philliposophy at gmail.com> wrote:

> Very interesting and important conversation happening in Duke Park/PAC-2 regarding Durham's apparently lawless roads. Conversation begins at the bottom and continues upward.
> I would love to read an 'official' response from someone working for Durham (and Durham's citizens).
> (I removed email addresses, last names, and addresses before sending.)
>  
> Phil Bost
> Duke Park/PAC-2
> 
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: Barry
> Date: Mon, Mar 14, 2011 at 10:21 AM
> Subject: Re: [dukepark] Re: [pac2] What is up with Durham drivers?
> To: dukepark at yahoogroups.com, PAC2 at yahoogroups.com
> Steve - i wanted to thank you for passionately giving public voice to
> the frustration that i and so many others around Durham feel at the
> seeming inability of our city leaders to recognize, let alone take steps
> to control, this problem. Traffic calming and pedestrian safety are at
> the heart of the "livable streets" or "total communities" concepts which
> our leadership will occasionally reference without taking real action.
> 
> It's especially frustrating because there are people in city government
> who get it. I've worked with both Phil Loziuk and Mark Ahrendsen in the
> Transportation Department (there are others in that department who
> understand the issue as well), and Councilman Woodard has also been
> quick to push for improvements to pedestrian safety when able. But we've
> already seen numerous instances of serious injury and fatalities on our
> streets that do not result in any efforts to make them safer.
> 
> Earlier this year i had occasion to discuss with the head of the
> City/County Inspections Department a vehicle with their logo that i
> observed speeding down northbound Roxboro Street; i thought my concerns
> were taken seriously and i have no reason to believe that appropriate
> actions were not taken. But even if we assume that every official
> vehicle is speeding every time it's in use, and that we can get every
> one of those drivers to start observing speed limits and traffic laws,
> we're still only talking about a minuscule portion of the problem.
> 
> In nearly 40 years of being a driver, Durham remains the only place i've
> lived in where the number of people i know who are asking the police to
> enforce traffic laws far exceeds the number of people i know who have
> received traffic and speeding tickets. I know of attorneys who claim
> they represent drivers in court every week who are contesting their
> citations, but compared to the sheer number of illegal and dangerous
> actions i see on the road every single day in Durham, the number of
> citations actually written pales in significance.
> 
> People who deal with these things for a living talk about the "three
> E's:" engineering, education, and enforcement. Our opportunities for
> re-engineering our streets are somewhat constrained. In north Durham,
> for instance, Guess Road had its once in a lifetime widening a few years
> ago. Several serious pedestrian accidents, including at least one
> fatality involving a high school student heading across town to
> Riverside early one morning, did not inspire any changes in the road
> design, and other than the speed trailer showing up for a couple of
> weeks, i'm not sure there's ever been a consistent effort to enforce the
> 35 mile limit there. Similarly, in east Durham, Alston Ave., Miami Blvd,
> Highway 98, etc., all see more than their share of pedestrian accidents,
> including fatalities. The city and state have a chance to get it right
> with the Alston Ave. redesign, and there are theoretically some
> improvements coming along Miami Blvd. as a result of the East End
> connector project, but so far the proposals for Alston cannot be said to
> be entirely pedestrian friendly, and who knows how long it will be
> before the projects peripheral to the EEC are actually implemented.
> 
> Durham has, though, shown that it can move with haste and purpose in
> dealing with pedestrian safety issues, given the proper motivation.
> Several years back, a Duke grad student was injured crossing Broad
> Street near Whole Foods. Despite initial objects from state DOT
> personnel that adding a second traffic light at Perry Street, with
> pedestrian activated walk signals was not warranted according to the
> Traffic Manual, exactly that set-up was installed. As i recall, the
> entire process took less than 120 days from accident to new pedestrian
> safety features. Along Club Blvd., our friends in the Watts
> Hospital-Hillandale neighborhood successfully petitioned the city to
> install a state of the art traffic calming chicane set-up where Club
> passes through Oval Drive Park. Part of the justification of that
> project was to have been its use as a "pilot project" to determine
> whether or not similar projects might be justified in other parts of
> town. Hopefully enough data has been gathered over the past few years to
> start making that determination, and if the project has in fact made
> being a pedestrian safer, we can expect to see our city leadership
> including funding for similar pedestrian safety projects in other parts
> of town.
> 
> But, barring that, we are still dependent on the other two E's,
> education and enforcement, to make the difference in our communities.
> How many drivers in Durham know that NC state law requires drivers to
> yield to pedestrians in crosswalks under nearly all circumstances? How
> many times do i see someone attempting to cross Roxboro Street on their
> way to or from Duke Park, standing in the crosswalk while vehicles whizz
> by at speeds well in excess of 35 mph? How many traffic citations were
> written by Durham PD over the past 12 months for crosswalk encroachment,
> or failure to yield to pedestrians? I've asked that question a dozen
> times or more over the past few years, and i've never gotten an answer.
> My guess is that the answer is not materially different from zero.
> 
> As to Avondale Drive, traffic there is an interesting situation.
> Southbound, after you cross the freeway, two lanes merge into one,
> generally creating enough friction, at least when there is traffic on
> the road, to keep the bulk of the traffic at the speed limit, or even
> below. Northbound is a different story, as there are no natural barriers
> to speeds up to and exceeding 50 mph. What that means is that the
> overall numbers tend to obscure the problem - i recall from discussion
> with city traffic engineers that the 80th percentile was somewhere near
> 37mph, which is considered to be reasonable. On the other hand, though,
> a 48 hour study in 2005 showed at least one vehicle every hour exceeding
> 50 mph. To me, that suggests an enforcement based solution. I haven't
> seen any indication, however, from upper echelons of city and police
> management, that they consider traffic law enforcement to be a priority
> issue for Durham. Perhaps future generations will affectionately refer
> to Durham as the "Boston of the South."
> 
> When you add the traffic issues, housing code violations that have been
> ignored, animal abuse, domestic violence, dumping, lawn parking, noise
> violations, and other ongoing problems along Avondale, it's a wonder
> that city officials, who often tout the "broken windows" theory of
> community engagement, haven't made this gateway road to Durham a
> priority. Many of the violations along Avondale fall under what Durham
> officials politely call "complaint driven" ordinances. In theory, this
> encourages citizens to "be the eyes and ears" of Durham's various
> enforcement communities. In practice, what this really means is that
> reporting ongoing violations is just as likely to be met with "you know,
> there are many other neighborhoods in Durham who would willingly trade
> your problems for theirs" as it is with citations. The end result is
> probably predictable - homeowners moving out, landlords neglecting their
> properties, vacancies, trash, and a 10-20 year cycle of declining
> property values and neglect that will require expensive city
> intervention and a new generation of urban pioneers to overcome.
> 
> Sigh.
> 
> Barry Ragin
> 1706 Shawnee St.
> 
>  
> 
> > On 3/12/11 2:04 PM, Steve wrote:
> >
> > Oh I know! I drive up and down that street frequently and see the
> > scofflaws zooming around with no regard for others. I know that a pet
> > peeve of Barry Ragin is all the cars that he HEARS zooming around and
> > he doesn't even live on Avondale.
> >
> > It all comes down to two things: There is a complete lack of respect
> > for our neighborhoods, and an almost complete lack of consequences to
> > those who speed around through our neighborhoods, drive on the wrong
> > side of the road, run through stop signs and red lights, tailgate, and
> > in generally drive like, um, well, jackasses.
> >
> > If the city doesn't do something about this someone is going to be
> > killed by one of these reckless drivers. It's long past time for the
> > city to wake up to the seriousness of this problem.
> >
> >
> > Steve
> 
>  
> 
> >> On Mar 12, 2011, at 1:48 PM, Mark wrote:
> >>
> >> If you really want to see the worst offenders spend an afternoon on
> >> Avondale. You will be shocked
> 
>  
> 
> >> *From*: Steve 
> >> *Subject*: Re: [dukepark] Re: [pac2] What is up with Durham drivers?
> >>
> >> If they passed your in an opposed lane, then yes it's illegal. If
> >> they blocked the intersection then yes it's illegal.
> >>
> >> Durham, city of lawlessness!
> >>
> >>
> >> Steve
> 
>  
> 
> >>> On Mar 12, 2011, at 11:43 AM, Laurie wrote:
> >>>
> >>> I was quite annoyed (and shocked) that two cars went around me the
> >>> other day, when I stopped at a green light so as not to block the
> >>> intersection. They then, of course, had to cut in front of me to get
> >>> back in the lane they needed to be in. Not technically illegal, but
> >>> very rude (not to mention dangerous).
> >>>
> >>> Laurie
> >>> Everett Place
> 
>  
> 
> >>>  On Sat, Mar 12, 2011 at 11:34 AM, Dan wrote:
> >>>     You are right to be po'd Steve. One thing we have talked about
> >>>     on the bikeped list serve is that citizens should ALWAYS call in
> >>>     commercial and government vehicles they see engaged in reckless
> >>>     driving/speeding. The City supposedly makes drivers who get
> >>>     called in take remedial driving class.
> >>>  Dan
> 
>  
> 
> >>>      Steve writes:
> >>>         Whether someone lives in Durham, works in Durham, WORKS FOR
> >>>         the City of Durham, or is just passing through, their
> >>>         reckless driving endangers us all. It also adversely affects
> >>>         the quality of life for many, if not all of us, as we drive,
> >>>         bike and walk throughout our city.
> >>>
> >>>         Steve
> 
>  
> 
> >>>>         On Mar 12, 2011, at 9:00 AM, Jessica wrote:
> >>>>         Let’s not make assumptions. Last time I checked our license
> >>>>         plates say North Carolina. Just because someone is driving
> >>>>         in Durham, let’s not assume that they are a Durham driver.
> 
>  
> 
> >>>>         From Betty:
> >>>>         *Subject:*Re: [pac2] What is up with Durham drivers?
> >>>>         You are so right! While waiting to turn left at Murray &
> >>>>         Roxboro, a number of times I have almost been hit by a car
> >>>>         rushing through (their) red light - now after the light
> >>>>         changes I wait until traffic has actually stopped both ways
> >>>>         which irritates a driver behind me. Sorry about that. What
> >>>>         purpose do posted speed limits serve? The majority
> >>>>         obviously believe they don't apply to them. Sometimes I
> >>>>         think that whatever speed limit is desired in an area, then
> >>>>         the posted speed should be 10 mph less.
> >>>>         One peeve of mine is that when I don't fly through a yellow
> >>>>         light, a car behind me passes me in the left-turn lane. I
> >>>>         thought a yellow light is a caution to slow and prepare to
> >>>>         stop--not speed up so as not to stop. And slow down to look
> >>>>         for a store, etc.--forget it.
> >>>>         I tried displaying a "pace" decal but I think that
> >>>>         irritated people. Also I have observed someone with said
> >>>>         decal displayed not driving posted speed limits.
> >>>>         No wonder new drivers speed and take reckless chances. Look
> >>>>         at the example their parents set. I chastised my son-in-law
> >>>>         in Greensboro for this with his two kids and his answer
> >>>>         "you have to drive over the speed limit to prevent other
> >>>>         drivers from running over you." In his residential area,
> >>>>         where roads are real curvy, the posted MPH is 25 but
> >>>>         everyone ignores it--even him.
> >>>>         This is not to say that on the highway, I may go 5-7 mph
> >>>>         over the speed limit but in residential areas I do obey the
> >>>>         limit--mostly out of respect for all the pedestrians and
> >>>>         also TO OBEY THE LAW which I am not above!
> >>>>         Our neighborhood has 25 MPH signs (my street doesn't) it
> >>>>         only has 11 houses and the sanitation, etc. trucks fly down
> >>>>         it, not to mention the UPS trucks. In recent months it has
> >>>>         been used as a short-cut (it's really not) between two
> >>>>         streets but it doesn't omit a stop sign so they fly up to
> >>>>         the sign, some actually stopping, others just slowing down.
> >>>>         What part of STOP can't they read.
> >>>>         And being female, I hate to say it, but I think women are
> >>>>         the worst offenders. There, thanks for letting me vent.
> >>>>         Betty
> 
>  
> 
> >>>>         On Thu, Mar 10, 2011 at 10:41 PM, Steve wrote:
> >>>>
> >>>>         I continue to be amazed a how truly awful many Durham
> >>>>         drivers are. Last week I heard a bad car crash right in
> >>>>         front of our house. A car speeding up a side-street slammed
> >>>>         into the back or a car stopped at a stop sign in front of
> >>>>         it, pushing it into traffic. Fortunately, injuries seemed
> >>>>         to be light, though one car was totaled.
> >>>>
> >>>>         On Wednesday while I was sitting on my front porch I
> >>>>         witnessed a City of Durham Public Works truck go barreling
> >>>>         down my street, engine roaring, at a speed of between 45 -
> >>>>         50 mph. Our speed limit is 25 mph. Unfortunately, seeing
> >>>>         city vehicles speed down my street is something I see just
> >>>>         about every hour of every day.
> >>>>
> >>>>         This evening while I was out walking our dogs I witnessed a
> >>>>         car come to a red light, slow down, then make a left turn
> >>>>         against the red light onto N. Roxboro St. This is the very
> >>>>         location where many car crashes have occurred; crashes
> >>>>         caused by these same type of reckless actions. One neighbor
> >>>>         who lives on the corner got so fed up with cars crashing
> >>>>         into the fence that they sold their house and moved.
> >>>>
> >>>>         This is not the type of neighborhood I want to live in.
> >>>>         This is not the type of city I want to live in.
> >>>>
> >>>>         Yes, I am very angry. The city should expect to hear more
> >>>>         from me at Coffee with Council which is occurring this
> >>>>         coming Monday.
> >>>>
> >>>>         Steve
> 
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