Special council session approves temporary Canterbury Road closure

During a special council session on July 18, the Mountain Brook City Council voted to temporarily close the section of Canterbury Road that runs from Petticoat Lane to Cahaba Road leading into the intersection of Mountain Brook Circle starting on July 29. This temporary closure will allow the city and Sain Associates to assess possible future impacts on traffic in the immediate and surrounding areas since a permanent closure of the same section is required for the roundabout project.

“If we can’t prove that the Canterbury Road closure improves the traffic counts for the study, then the roundabouts won’t happen,” said councilman Phil Black, explaining that a requirement to receive federal funding covering 80 percent of the cost for the project is for the roundabouts to be effective for traffic.

In a previous study completed while school was in session, Sain Associates gathered that the Canterbury Road section of the intersection carries about six percent of the traffic, but is taking up to 20 percent of signal capacity. “We can reallocate seven to 13 minutes of green time during that peak hour,” said Alicia Bailey with Sain Associates.

Attending residents expressed concern for the possibility of traffic queues in other areas of the city as well as increased drivers in residential areas, to which both Bailey and Becky White, also with Sain Associates, agreed they would look at while the temporary closure is in effect.

To be sure the city and Sain Associates collects all the information they need for an accurate assessment, councilman Billy Pritchard suggested the closure be in effect until the end of September in addition to a possibility of extension.

The council agreed and passed a resolution to temporarily close the road from Petticoat Lane to Cahaba Road from July 29 through the end of September, although the end date may be extended. To provide commentary or ask questions throughout the closure, contact city manager Sam Gaston at gastons@mtnbrook.org.