Traffic Circle Proposed for New Kent & Prince Arthur
The traffic circle above might be built at New Kent and Prince Arthur. The traffic circle would attempt to calm traffic in the area and is a result of nearby residents expressing their concerns to the city. The Westover Hills Neighborhood Association has more details.
Tom Flynn, an engineer with the city’s Transportation Engineering Division (and a Westover Hills resident) brought the idea to the WHNA board in September. He said a traffic study on New Kent conducted in late May 2010 showed that about 85 percent of traffic along New Kent travels at speeds less than 4 percent over the 25 mph speed limit, but that traffic volume is very heavy during morning and evening commute times. Experience with similar traffic islands in other cities, Flynn said, indicates it would help reduce speeds and prevent accidents. Islands slow traffic by creating a visual “barrier.”
Flynn and other city representatives will discuss the proposal at WHNA’s regular monthly meeting on Thursday, Nov. 11, at 7 p.m. at the Westover Hills United Methodist Church. Also mentioned in the article is over the next few months current traffic lights will be replaced with overhead arm lights at three locations: at New Kent and Westover Hills Boulevard, Forest Hill avenue and Westover Hills Boulevard, and Jahnke Road and Forest Hill Avenue.
Is it just me or does it fail to instill confidence in anyone else that the cities proposal contains a misspelling of “prince” and instead reads “Price Arthur Rd”? While this mistake can easily be corrected in the computer program this document was created in I fear that poured concrete requires a bit more to repair once this mistake has been made….just sayin’.
It doesn’t sound as though speeding is an issue, and I don’t see any reference the number of accidents at the intersection.
Combine that with the fact that the signage prohibiting cars to turn in to the neighborhood on other side streets during rush hour is contributing to the heavier volume on New Kent and I have to say that my first reaction was “You must be kidding”.
Eliminate the signage that funnels traffic on to New Kent in the first place.
A traffic circle at Westover Hills Boulevard and Forest Hill Avenue makes more sense.
Five years I’ve tried to get SOMEONE from the city to give a flying damn about the ridiculous traffic situation on Clarence St. Five years.
Thanks, Richmond. Henrico looks better every minute.
AreaMan, the traffic runs from Westover Hills down Bassett up W 49th St to Clarence to Jahnke, and vise versa. Some of it continues down Bassett across the railroad tracks to the new circles on Buroughbridge (sic?). I agree something needs to be done. Cars used to routinely land in my front yard but about 4 years ago the city did a better job of marking the intersectiion. It’s still risking crossing Bassett on foot, esp with a older dog. Cars rushing down from Westover Hills or around the curve from the tracks may not see us in time. To add injury, we are their trashcan. Clarence has it worse because there are no curves to slow down drivers but there is enough of a hill there to make crossing on foot dangerous. Also people pass on Clarence, a narrow road with parking on both sides.
It’s tough dealing with rude and stupid drivers
Stuffa, you can’t turn onto New Kent during rush hour (or rush 15-minutes as I, a former NOVA resident call it ;) I do think it’s an odd place to worry about traffic. We live on peterborough were a lot of the New Kent traffic ends up. Truth be told, it doesn’t look like a very large circle so doesn’t require the major construction one at one of the bigger intersection would require.
Thanks for the post on this. As a resident of one of the four homes on this corner, I was unaware of the study.
@Pagalina…I’m originally from up Nawth and we refer to the traffic problem here as rush-minute. :o)
After thinking about it a little more, it occurs to me that people are also likely using New Kent more than other streets because there is a traffic light at Westover Hills Blvd., which means that there is guaranteed intermittent signal assisted safe crossing of said Blvd.
Speeding isn’t the main issue, accident frequency isn’t mentioned (not an issue either?)volume is likely very local traffic only anyway…
As others have pointed out, there are other are intersections and cut-throughs that are more problematic.
Susan – I guess it was going to be a surprise when the bulldozers showed up to claim part of your yard.
I always take New Kent to Peterborough to get into/out of Westover Hills b/c New Kent is a wide 2 way street. I prefer driving down it rather than the tight one way street I live on (which often has big SUV’s or contractor’s vehicles parked on each side).
It seems like an odd spot to spend time and energy on a traffic circle. I’ve used that street multiple times a day for the past 6 years and rarely encounter other cars at the intersection where the circle is proposed. If they just want to slow down traffic, why don’t they make it a 4 way stop?
@ Jennifer from the article. “The island would be attractively landscaped with a crepe myrtle tree and nandinas. No other changes would be made to the street, the curbs, or the sidewalks, and no one’s property would be disturbed.”
“Attractively landscaped” lol. Come look at the circle he built at Perry and W. 28th. Its unattractive and has no effect except when people swing too wide and end up in my neighbors yard or against the curb. Look at the attractive bumpouts he installed on Midlo near Swansboro Elem. All the trees were dead when installed, the concrete and paving doesn’t match or meet up with whats already there. Its just an eyesore. This is the same guy that pushed for the traffic circle at roanoke and westover hills that thankfully was killed. If he would build actual roundabouts that would be one thing but he just wants to dig up the road and put a circle in the middle of the road.
Greg on W. 28th.
What about the traffic on New Kent on the OTHER (Forest Hill) side of Boulevard? We’re the ones who get all the rush hour traffic–the sign at Westover Hills Blvd. prohibits cars from going straight across to the “high-rent” side of New Kent.
@Foust
That sign didn’t slow down the driver who nearly slammed in to me a short while ago as I turned N on the WH Blvd…the driver shot right through the intersection and continued W on New Kent, ignoring the signage.
Crape myrtle and nandina do not attractive landscapes make: that is classic shopping center crap.
Is someone at city hall having an affair with the traffic circle salesman? These things are cropping up in the darndest places…
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4 way stops everywhere!
why all the hate about crape myrtles and nandina? they’re perfectly lovely specimens – hardy, flowers in the spring, color in the fall, food for the birds. What’s not to like? Now about those circles….
I don’t understand it either. Crape myrtles and nandina are already all over the neighborhood, lining the streets, in the alleys, etc. It would blend into the neighborhood fine. Heaven help the poor folks who just want a nice way for the traffic to take it easy on their street….
“Is someone at city hall having an affair with the traffic circle salesman? These things are cropping up in the darndest places…”
There is Federal money involved. What kills me is that citizens across the river in Oregon Hill have requested a traffic circle for Idlewood, but the City and Councilperson Jewell won’t even comment on it. What the hell?
Both plants are over-used (“already all over the neighborhood”), non-native species, and especially in the case of nandina, somewhat invasive.
http://www.invasive.org/eastern/srs/SB_N.html
There are native plant selections that are better options for humans, wildlife and pollinators.
Examples? Washington Hawthorn: small flowering tree (pollinators!), glossy foliage, fall color, and winter berries (hello, cedar waxwings!) and nesting structure.
Low bush blueberries: Spring flowers (pollinators again) lovely foliage, berries (hello birdies!)great fall color, and cover.
#20, Scott what I hear is that OH endorsed a traffic circle, Marty Jewell supported it, as did VCU (who even promised some money). Traffic engineers drew the plans, but when it went for funding, the low accident rate at the intersection precluded it from receiving federal traffic safety funding. Everybody supports, nobody has money. I don’t know why Marty and the engineers won’t tell you about this, unless they feel they have been burned too many times.
Thanks for the reply. I heard the same things. The problem is I have not seen conclusive proof of these suppositions and I strongly question them.
We have a dangerous intersection off a one way highway ramp that drivers confuse for two-way, near a community garden and primary school. Not to mention the ridiculous amount of downtown and university commuters. That we have not had more acccidents is by the grace of God. Does someone have to die in a horrible wreck?
I do not understand why we have all these traffic constructions going on in other neighborhoods (no offense meant to the one in this post) that have either not asked for them in the first place or are lukewarm on them at best, while my neighborhood has been requesting one for over five years now and still can’t get it.
By the way, here’s a way to search for federal stimulus projects by your zipcode:
http://www.recovery.gov/Pages/default.aspx
A couple of suggestions. Either ask your council member to set up a meeting with traffic engineers, or have the neighborhood association itself ask the traffic engineering staff to attend a meeting and discuss options. Happens all the time in the Fourth, including next week in Westover Hills.
Been there, done that. But I will do it again. Thanks for the suggestions and replies nontheless.
There is a new traffic engineer (about a year now) and is much more responsive.
Or come to the Westover Hills meeting, introduce yourself at the end of the meeting and ask him to come to OH.
I wish they’d put a traffic circle in at Belvidere and Broad. Traffic engineers keep saying it would be ridiculously dangerous and we’d lose 5 or 10 VCU students a year. While on the one hand…
I wasn’t aware that was an issue intersection. What exactly has been going on there?
And “visual barrier” will only slow traffic until they get used to any circle being there and then it will be the same. My office park is a case in point. People fly around he circles.
Since most of the traffic incidents I witness at my intersection are by residents, then I feel the circle will be sped around in no time.
[...] forget everyone’s favorite thing to discuss is on the agenda, the New Kent traffic circle. Posted by Richard.H at 8:08AM under Westover Hills | Tags: New Kent, Prince Arthur, traffic [...]