Also serving the communities of De Luz, Rainbow, Camp Pendleton, Pala and Pauma
Also serving the communities of De Luz, Rainbow, Camp Pendleton, Pala and Pauma
The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 November 1, with Supervisor Ron Roberts absent, to ratify several recommendations from the county’s Traffic Advisory Committee including recertification of 40 mph speed limits on Reche Road and Hutchison Street for radar enforcement and a parking prohibition on Via Asuncion.
The Traffic Advisory Committee had made its recommendations at the August 25 TAC meeting. The parking ban for the Bonsall road will return to the supervisors November 15 for a second reading and adoption and will become effective December 15.
In order for a speed limit to be enforceable by radar, the speed limit must be set at the nearest 5 mph increment to the 85th percentile speed, although if special findings of conditions not apparent to the motorist are made the speed limit can be set at 5 mph lower than the prevailing flow of traffic speed. Periodic recertification for radar enforcement is required, and that process necessitates a new speed survey.
The Reche Road segment covers 0.68 miles between Live Oak Park Road and Via Vista. Its 40 mph speed limit was previously certified for radar enforcement in 1998, when a speed survey taken 1,180 feet west of Live Oak Park Road indicated an 85th percentile speed of 40.6 mph with 83.9 percent of drivers in the 10-mph pace of 34-43 mph. A 2005 survey showed an 85th percentile of 43.3 mph with 86.5 percent of drivers within the 36-45 mph pace, and that speed would have required a 45 mph speed limit for radar enforcement in the absence of special findings.
The speed survey, however, was taken along the only straight section of a primarily curvilinear road. A new traffic signal at Reche Road and Gird Road went into effect April 20, one day before the Traffic Advisory Committee meeting considering the recertification, so the recertification recommendation was continued from the April 21 TAC hearing to determine if the new signal changed the speed survey results.
The speed survey taken after the signal became operational showed an 85th percentile speed of 40.7 mph with 87 percent of drivers in a 33-42 mph pace. The Fallbrook Community Planning Group indicated its support for a 40 mph speed limit, and the most recent three-year collision record indicated that 40 mph was a more reasonable speed than 45 mph. Between January 30, 2003, and January 30, 2006, a total of 14 collisions along the roadway were reported, seven of which involved injury.
Two-way traffic counts taken west of Gird Road revealed an average daily traffic volume of 11,230 vehicles in April 2006 compared to 11,190 vehicles in February 2002. A January 1998 traffic count determined an average volume of 8,320 vehicles while a February 1993 survey produced an average daily volume of 9,320 vehicles. Reche Road is classified as a rural collector on the county’s Circulation Element map.
The Hutchison Street speed limit covers the 1.5-mile segment of the Bonsall road between East Vista Way and Osbourne Street. The most recent speed survey indicated an 85th percentile speed of 37.5 mph.
The parking prohibition on Via Asuncion will affect both sides of the street from the south line of Olive Hill Road to 750 feet south of Olive Hill Road. The parking prohibition was a condition placed upon a development project.
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