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It’s not a highway, it’s our neighborhood
Recognize Lake Shore Drive’s special character, nurture its many uses, and respect the fact that it is a residential road.
Goal: In the short term: To slow Lakeshore Drive to: 45 MPH from Ferris st. in Grand Haven to all the way to lake Ridge drive in Holland. Using representative sampling and a -7 MPH adjustment as well as more and better marked pedestrian crossings.
Goal: In the long term: The community has grown and developed around Lakeshore Drive, local government has encouraged that development. Now, it is time for the infrastructure to reflect that growth. We need the Ottawa County Road Commission to build a "residential & recreational main street" out of a drag strip. That is to deploy traffic calming techniques with the long term goal of passing a road speed test of 40 MPH. In residential areas. (without the need for the -7 MPH adjustment) - see red bar below and the video for information on traffic calming. The term for this is "Placemaking" usually it refers to urban environments.
Improve safety for pedestrians, campers, beach goers, trailered boats & campers, park users, bicyclist, and residents. As well as reduce road noise for residents that live on and adjacent to Lake Shore drive. Reduce speed limit on Lake Shore Drive to a posted & consistent speed limit of 45 MPH short term & 40 MPH long term:). The obvious exception for Rosy Mound School.
Goal: In the short term: To slow Lakeshore Drive to: 45 MPH from Ferris st. in Grand Haven to all the way to lake Ridge drive in Holland. Using representative sampling and a -7 MPH adjustment as well as more and better marked pedestrian crossings.
Goal: In the long term: The community has grown and developed around Lakeshore Drive, local government has encouraged that development. Now, it is time for the infrastructure to reflect that growth. We need the Ottawa County Road Commission to build a "residential & recreational main street" out of a drag strip. That is to deploy traffic calming techniques with the long term goal of passing a road speed test of 40 MPH. In residential areas. (without the need for the -7 MPH adjustment) - see red bar below and the video for information on traffic calming. The term for this is "Placemaking" usually it refers to urban environments.
Improve safety for pedestrians, campers, beach goers, trailered boats & campers, park users, bicyclist, and residents. As well as reduce road noise for residents that live on and adjacent to Lake Shore drive. Reduce speed limit on Lake Shore Drive to a posted & consistent speed limit of 45 MPH short term & 40 MPH long term:). The obvious exception for Rosy Mound School.
Bring Lakeshore Drive into compliance with Michigan Complete Streets legislation (Public Acts 134 and 135) signed into law on August 1, 2010 & Highlights from the State Transportation Commission Policy on Complete Streets (Adopted July 26, 2012).
Unlike most rural roads, with only the occasional home between farms, Lake Shore Drive has a unique character of a built up residential "a recreational main street" with county parks, private campgrounds, and public beach access points. It is a beautiful scenic drive, with many hidden driveways. Lakeshore is used by a unusually large number of vehicles pulling trailers (boats & campers), motorcycles, and bicyclists. Seasonally, its deep lake effect snows, produce “tunnel vision” a making it difficult to see while pulling out of driveways and neighborhoods into traffic that’s going 55 MPH ( often 60+ MPH). We believe that the standard “Prima Facie speed Limits” are not appropriate for Lake shore drive with it’s unique character. Adjustments of -7 MPH are possible for hidden hazards: i.e. hidden drives, distracting hidden lake views, bicycles hidden by other vehicles, etc. Rounding it off to 45 MPH ( MDOT Rules).
Lake shore drive’s special characteristics:
The Nature of Lakeshore drive is that it has many more cars and trucks pulling camper or boats than other roads. Edmonds recommends twice the breaking distance than vehicles without trailers. ”In other words, when towing, everything you do while driving needs to be done at about half the speed when compared to driving without a trailer. When you turn, go much slower. When you accelerate, do it much easier. When you brake, allow yourself a great deal more space to stop” *http://www.edmunds.com/how-to/how-to-tow-a-trailer.html How To Tow a Trailer By Miles Cook, Contributor | Published Feb 9, 2003
(Translation: a vehicle pulling a trailer going 55 MPH has the same breaking distance as a vehicle not pulling a trailer going 110 MPH)
- large number of driveways, many are hidden
- numerous sight obstructions, trailers, snow walls seasonally, distracting lake views, and moving hidden obstacles, bikes hidden by larger vehicles (always in different locations).
- pedestrian activities: children going to school & campgrounds, families going to the beach, road bicycles, pedestrians crossing from the bake paths to Rosy Mound, Kirk Park, and Olive Shores, people doing yard work, large community mail boxes, people crossing at camp Blodgett & buses on the beach, older citizens.
- The Bike Path (a sidewalk) is only one one side of Lakeshore drive- this creates a lot of pedestrian road crossings as half the people using it cross the road twice.
- potential hazards: car and truck hauling boats to the public boat launch, camper trailers, peoples pets and deer ( the road is not fenced- nor should it be it’s our neighborhood)
- homes and vacation homes are at higher risk thieves target homes for break-ins near fast roads for easy getaways.
- (crime isn’t currently a big problem, but homes along Lake shore are good targets, its best to design to prevent problems)
- residential road, road noise increases dramatically over 40 MPH*
- Motorcycles on Lake Shore Drive are profoundly loud, the best and most enforceable sound ordinance is to drop the speed limit to 40 MPH(or lower). They make a lot less noise accelerating to 40 MPH than 55MPH.
- Many neighbors on lakeshore drive feel pushed into their drives by speeding tailgaters. (who don’t (or can’t) slowdown as we exit Lakeshore Drive.
The Nature of Lakeshore drive is that it has many more cars and trucks pulling camper or boats than other roads. Edmonds recommends twice the breaking distance than vehicles without trailers. ”In other words, when towing, everything you do while driving needs to be done at about half the speed when compared to driving without a trailer. When you turn, go much slower. When you accelerate, do it much easier. When you brake, allow yourself a great deal more space to stop” *http://www.edmunds.com/how-to/how-to-tow-a-trailer.html How To Tow a Trailer By Miles Cook, Contributor | Published Feb 9, 2003
(Translation: a vehicle pulling a trailer going 55 MPH has the same breaking distance as a vehicle not pulling a trailer going 110 MPH)
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