Photo by Sarah Owens
Richard Caudle addresses the Mountain Brook City Council in a special work session on Sept. 26 to discuss efforts to curb cut-through traffic along Halbrook Lane and Arundel Drive
Mountain Brook's City Council chambers were full on Thursday night as councilmembers and city residents alike gathered for a work session to discuss cut-through traffic along Halbrook Lane and Arundel Drive.
The meeting was held specifically for the council to review their recent efforts to address the traffic issue. The council passed a no through traffic ordinance and installed corresponding signs in May, placed speed humps on streets on July 18-19 and added chicanes on July 23.
The actions are in response to the request of residents for the city to vacate streets, making them private to stop motorists from cutting through. Traffic issues along the streets began when construction in 2021 closed Crosshaven Drive in Vestavia, and Halbrook and Arundel were designated as detour routes. Many residents say people continue to use the streets as a cut-through even though the the construction was completed over three years ago.
“There is no great answer at all,” Smith said in a May council meeting while discussing the topic, acknowledging that no remedy is ideal. “If we go through the process of closing the road, we think we’re going to have opposition. The only way to justify the road should be closed is to go through this process to reduce traffic through alternate means.”
While the city took steps to reduce traffic on the streets, they worked with Skipper Consulting inc., an engineering firm that specializes in traffic engineering, to complete a traffic study to understand the impacts of the changes.
Initial numbers from the study, taken in January 2023, showed nearly 2,500 cars using Halbrook each day, and almost 800 used Arundel.
Traffic engineer Richard Caudle presented the findings of the study at Thursday's meeting, showing that based on numbers from September, the changes decreased traffic nearly 30% along Halbrook Lane and roughly 13% on Arundel Drive. However, Caudle said because the ordinance, speed humps and chicanes were all implemented in such a short timeframe, the findings of the study make it difficult to determine which change made the most impact or if it was a combination of the three.
"We have shifted the needle on the traffic on Halbrook. We've made significant progress," Caudle said. "But by no means have we cut out all of the quote on quote cut-through traffic."
Caudle also mentioned that while the numbers dropped, there is no industry standard for what an acceptable amount of through traffic is on a residential street. He noted as well that the characteristics of a residence, such as set-back distance or a circle driveway, can impact the safety and traffic flow of the street, not just how many cars use the road.
Residents also expressed concerns during the meeting about the efforts to change traffic flow in the area. While Smith asked for commenters to only share new suggestions or recommendations for other actions the council could take to address the issue, a majority spoke of safety concerns related to the project.
Multiple people mentioned closing the street to through traffic results in blind left turns onto Overton Road, causing potentially unsafe situations. Another mentioned how the chicanes can cause confusion for drivers while others brought up the issue of drivers failing to stop at stop signs along Halbrook.
A few commenters suggested things like traffic lights or even traffic cameras to enforce speed limits and stop signs to increase safety in the area.
Ultimately, Thursday's meeting did not result in any decisions from the council, and Smith said they will need to deliberate and consider all options before identifying next steps.
