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Traffic Control Gets Easier

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By SUSAN M. GREEN

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 21, 2008

TAMPA - County commissioners have made it substantially easier for neighborhoods to get speed humps and other traffic control devices installed on residential streets.

An item on the board's consent agenda Tuesday changed the requirements so that only 51 percent of ballots returned in a neighborhood under consideration for traffic calming measures must be marked in favor for the county to proceed with installation.

Previously, a 60 percent approval by eligible property owners was required. The change approved Tuesday also means only a simple majority of ballots received, not all ballots sent out, must be marked "yes" for speed humps to be installed.

County spokesman Steve Valdez said the Hillsborough Public Works staff drafted the changes at the request of county commissioners. He said commissioners were responding to complaints from residents of the Lake Magdalene area of North Hillsborough that absent or out-of-state property owners were not returning ballots, thus making it difficult to achieve the threshold for county installation of control measures.

Materials supplied to county commissioners noted that requirements for the Neighborhood Traffic Calming Program were eased in 2006, when commissioners agreed to eliminate a petition process and scaled back the percentage of property owners needed to approve speed controls from 75 percent to 60 percent.

Valdez acknowledged that not all homeowners embrace speed humps on the streets they use to access their homes. Some homeowners have protested their installation and petitioned to have them removed once the humps are installed.

"There are strong feelings on both sides, pro and con," Valdez said.

The traffic calming program adopted by county commissioners in 2003 includes steps residents must follow to request traffic control measures. Those include public meetings and an analysis by a county-appointed hearing master, who makes recommendations to the county commission and determines the boundaries of the neighborhood affected by traffic volume or speeders. Those steps were not changed Tuesday.

Valdez said the changes may be a "moot point," at least for the foreseeable future. County Administrator Pat Bean's proposed budget would eliminate the program to save money in anticipation of reduced property tax revenues, Valdez said.

Duck And Dodge

In Gibsonton, motorists on Symmes Road may face delays through July 5 as workers resurface the road between U.S. 41 and Tangle Creek Boulevard. County officials authorized intermittent shutdowns of the westbound lane, beginning June 13.

In Ruskin, Tampa Electric Co. workers have been authorized to close lanes intermittently on First Street Northwest through July 11. Workers are scheduled to transfer overhead conductors to new poles between 19th and 15th avenues.

GOT A QUESTION?

Do you wonder why two roads come together as they do? Know about a recurring traffic hazard or bottleneck in your South Shore neighborhood or on your commute? Think you know a way to relieve traffic jams? Call Susan Green at (813) 865-1566 or e-mail sgreen@tampatrib.com with suggestions for "Getting Around."

Reporter Susan M. Green can be reached at (813) 865-1566 or sgreen@tampatrib.com.

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