When residents identify a particular street segment as being potentially viable for traffic calming measures, the first step should be to fill out a Traffic Calming Program Questionnaire, which includes a petition to demonstrate neighborhood support. After sending this to the City, the Transportation Department will work with the neighbors to obtain any further information needed to move on to the next step.
The Transportation Department is focused on managing traffic speeds on roads that do not have established speeds outside of the 35 mph ordinance. As capacity allows, Traffic Engineering will perform an engineering and traffic study in requested areas to determine whether measures to slow traffic are warranted.
What determines if my street is a candidate for traffic calming?
The traffic engineering study must show:
- 15 percent or more of vehicles are traveling more than 5 miles per hour over the speed limit, or the total traffic volume on the street must be greater than 1,000 vehicles per day
- Approval by the Asheville Fire Department to ensure that emergency response times will not be negatively impacted if traffic calming measures are installed.
Traffic calming studies take time and examine a number of factors, followed by designation of funding for implementing changes. Once street calming has been justified by the above measures, the street will be considered as a candidate for an upcoming traffic calming project.
Note: Stop signs are not used for traffic calming purposes, although the City does create All-Way Stop intersections on a case-by-case basis due to other safety and operational concerns.