Benvenue/Hillegass First Traffic Meeting Notes, June 16, 1999

At an initial meeting at the Claremont branch of the Berkeley Library on June 16, the focus of discussion was on:

  1. Slowing traffic on the Benvenue and Hillegass residential streets and on
  2. Improving safety at the intersection of Benvenue and Ashby.

In the initial discussion, the favored approach for Hillegass was to use painted lines for an initial study. This choice for Hillegass was favored because of the relatively low cost, ease of approval and the fact that Hillegass will be paved over soon if the lines are not effective. It was believed that this approach could be implemented quite quickly with block approval.

The initial approach most discussed for Benvenue was that of using bollards (the large "pots" seen in various Berkeley streets) to block the line of sight and possibly to create a congestion point on some blocks. Later discussion on the 2800 and 2900 blocks focused on midblock narrowings. It was felt that this approach could be put into place moderately quickly with block concensus. There hasn't yet been a discussion of a specific narrowing location on the 3000 block of Benvenue, but there is interest there as well.

The initial approach discussed to improve safety at the intersection of Benvenue and Ashby was to make the entrances from Benvenue onto Ashby right turn only during congested times. It was agreed to gather together and analyse the necessary traffic data to study the feasability of this approach. Since this approach might have an impact on other streets, a traffic study and wider concensus would be required to implement it.

Notes by Jed Donnelley