Streets and Traffic. North Side Neighborhood Preservation Study

摘要

The transportation element of the North Side preservation study, conducted for Iowa City, Iowa, devised a number of ways to minimize the negative impact of traffic while maintaining needed circulation patterns. The area is near downtown, the University of Iowa, and Mercy Hospital. As a result, nonresidential automobile traffic is heavy and often is a danger to residential movement which is mostly on foot or by bicycle. Many motorists use alleys as short cuts. The study recommends well - marked pedestrian crosswalks at all arterial intersections, well - marked bicycle lanes, and signs warning motorists of both pedestrian and bicycle uses. Three exceptionally busy intersections need traffic signals. Diverters or barriers should be erected to eliminate through traffic on residential streets and to discourage the use of alleys as streets. A concrete 'neck' formed by extending the curb into the crosswalk can be used to slow down traffic turning into a residential street from an arterial street; these necks would also give greater protection to pedestrians. Brick paving should be retained or restored on residential streets because it adds to the character of the neighborhood and tends to slow down traffic. Finally, sightlines at intersections should be kept as they are or reduced since motorists tend to drive more carefully with restricted sightlines. Maps, drawings, and an extensive bibliography are included.