Mountain Brook Fire Chief Chris Mullins speaks during the Feb. 12 Mountain Brook Council meeting. Photo courtesy of Solomon Crenshaw Jr.
Speed humps could be used to divert traffic if the Mountain Brook City Council chooses that option to detour motorists from cutting through a neighborhood.
During their pre-council meeting on Feb. 12, council members heard from traffic engineer Richard Caudle who said street humps are designed to slow traffic and thus may not be effective in keeping motorists from cutting through on Halbrook Lane and Arundel Drive.
“He’s been very clear that he doesn’t think it’s going to affect the traffic,” Council President Virginia Smith said. “He said he thought it (traffic) might shift to Cromwell (if speed humps are installed) but to get to Cromwell is not as easy. You’re just going farther.”
When called upon, Police Chief James “Jaye” Loggins and Fire Chief Chris J. Mullins said they would rather the humps not be used.
“My issue is Vestavia is growing around (that) area, causing more traffic and causing more volume,” Loggins said. “That’s a mess. It’s a standstill at certain times of the day.”
“With the speed humps comes noise,” the police chief continued. “You’re going to hear (vehicles as they cross the humps) and it’s going to cause wear and tear on your vehicles as well.”
Mullins said “seconds really do count” when it comes to responding to medical emergencies. “If you’re going to slow down a car, you’re going to slow down a fire apparatus or an ambulance even more. When we get to a speed hump, we have to slow to almost zero miles per hour because … it dislodges the equipment on the truck.”
Some residents talked about the possibility of closing roads to prevent cut-through traffic. City Attorney Whit Colvin said that might not be possible, as at least one of the streets in question is in both Mountain Brook and Vestavia Hills.
“In this case, the line goes straight through the middle of the road. You would necessarily be vacating a road that lies, in part, in two jurisdictions. That creates a legal problem as to who has the authority to do that. Both cities could do it, together. We’ve done that … near the old John Carroll Field. That road is actually in Birmingham and Mountain Brook and in order to close … we actually had to get permission from Birmingham and from the landowners.
City Manager Sam Gaston said traffic studies have shown that there is not a speeding issue on those streets.
“It’s just a volume issue,” he said. “Cahaba Heights has changed and you’ve got the Post Office there and there’s a connection as far as there being more and more traffic.”
Gaston said motorists got used to detouring through that neighborhood when road work was done on Crosshaven Drive.
“Of course,” Gaston said, “Crosshaven has been opened up for over a year but some people still use it as a cut-through.” Richard (Caudle) will tell you this will reduce speed some and it probably will convince some people not to use that (route), if the council agrees with that,” he said. We'll have a public hearing in a few weeks. The council doesn’t have to make a decision that night; they’ll make a decision on some future date. That’ll be the next step.”
The council president said that while some have been vocal on the subject, a cross section of the residents has not yet been heard.
“I’m not even sure the neighborhood is in agreement with what they want,” Virginia Smith said. “It’ll be interesting to hear.”
In the meantime, Gaston expects to speak with Vestavia Hills City Manager Jeff Downes about the matter as that neighboring municipality could be impacted by the resulting action.
The council also heard Caudle’s presentation about the Euclid Avenue "curve" at Azalea Road. The city will look into installing guardrails at the right of way at that location.
The panel also heard a request for a street light at Overton Road and Knollwood Lane. Gaston said he will send letters to residents in that area to alert them of a hearing on the matter on Feb. 26. The council would decide what, if any, action will be taken after that hearing.
During the council meeting, Mayor Stewart Welch III reappointed Carey Hollingsworth to the Planning Commission.
The council:
- Approved a service agreement with Lexipol, LLC for the Cordico Shield Law Enforcement Wellness App.
- Executed a contractor agreement with Net Connections, LLC to install the batting cage at Mountain Brook Elementary.
- Passed a resolution authorizing the sale or disposal of certain surplus property.
The next City Council meeting will be Feb. 26 at 7 p.m.
