Proposed Half-Street Closure on Rockway Avenue

The Public Works Department is proposing a half-street closure on Rockway Avenue to reduce cut-through traffic volumes on this local street. The half-street closure would prohibit eastbound through traffic from Ashbury Avenue to Colusa Avenue. Westbound through traffic from Colusa Avenue to Ashbury Avenue and two-way travel within the street would be maintained. The proposed half-street closure was selected by residents of Rockway Avenue as part of a neighborhood traffic management process that began in October 2007. The process included a neighborhood petition, support by the El Cerrito General Plan, feasibility analyses, three public meetings and a neighborhood vote that demonstrated support from 66 percent of the households on Rockway Avenue. The proposed half-street closure would be implemented and tested for a six-month period using signs, striping, and delineators.

See the Proposed Changes (PDF, 272Kb)

Rockway Avenue is a local street adjacent to El Cerrito High School and one block north of Fairmount Avenue. Rockway Avenue carries average weekday traffic volumes of approximately 2,000 vehicles per day. These traffic volumes are significantly higher than the traffic volumes typically generated by 32 homes, and verify the presence of cut-through traffic. The traffic volumes on Rockway Avenue are also higher than any other of the classified local streets in the area bounded by Ashbury Avenue on the west, Lynn Avenue on the south, Sea View Drive on the east, and Eureka Avenue on the north. Furthermore, many jurisdictions consider a local street to qualify for neighborhood traffic management measures if traffic volumes exceed anywhere between 1,000 to 1,500 vehicles per day. It should be noted that, consistent with their classification as collector streets, Sea View Drive, Eureka Avenue east of Sea View Drive, and Colusa Avenue carry more traffic than any of the local streets including Rockway Avenue.

Additional Modifications
Based on specific concerns expressed by the public in response to various notices sent and meetings held in 2008, the Public Works Department is recommending the following modifications to be implemented with the proposed half-street closure:

• Modify the traffic signal phasing at the Fairmount Avenue/Ashbury Avenue intersection to separate northbound and southbound traffic and reevaluate signal timing by time of day;
• Install "KEEP CLEAR" pavement legends on Ashbury Avenue at the intersection of Rockway Avenue;
• Maintain bicycle access on eastbound Rockway Avenue to provide an attractive alternative to Fairmount Avenue;
• Ensure physical layout of half-closure clearly provides a benefit to pedestrians; and
• Install and test the half-street closure during a six-month trial period.

Comments or Questions?
If you have any other questions, we request that you contact Yvetteh Ortiz, Engineering Manager by Thursday, October 22, 2009 at (510) 215-4345 or yortiz@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us. You are also welcome to attend the City Council Meeting on Monday, November 2, 2009 when the Public Works Department is scheduled to present this item to the City Council for approval.

BACKGROUND

A community meeting was held on Tuesday, July 29, 2008 at the Community Center to discuss a proposal for neighborhood traffic management on Rockway Avenue. The Public Works Department has been proposing a half-street closure on Rockway Avenue at Ashbury Avenue that would allow westbound through traffic from Colusa Avenue to Ashbury Avenue, but would prevent eastbound through traffic from Ashbury Avenue to Colusa Avenue. This modification was selected by the Rockway Avenue neighbors to address cut-through traffic volumes as part of a neighborhood traffic management process that began in October 2007.

The Public Works Department will be further evaluating the proposal in light of various comments made at the July 29 meeting, and how any modifications will affect, or be affected by improvements to be constructed as part of the Upper Fairmount Streetscape Master Plan – Phase 1 Project and the recently awarded Highway Safety Improvement Program Grant for the Fairmount Avenue/Ashbury Avenue Intersection Reconfiguration. For this reason, the scheduled presentation to City Council has been postponed. We anticipate presenting the matter to the City Council, including evaluation of impacts, summary of community concerns, and timeline for implementation in September or October 2008. Please return to this website for further updates.

For more information on Rockway Avenue Neighborhood Traffic Management, please contact Yvetteh Ortiz, Engineering Manager at (510) 215-4345 or yortiz@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us.