Informational Meeting

MINUTES Informational Meeting Tuesday, December 6, 2022 at 4:00 PM Carnegie Town Hall, 235 West 10th St., Sioux Falls, SD 57104 1. Call To Order Council Members Present: David Barranco, Sarah Cole, Alex Jensen, Rich Merkouris, Marshall Selberg, Curt Soehl, Pat Starr Council Members Absent: Greg Neitzert Council Chair Curt Soehl called the meeting to order at 4 p.m. 2. Committee/Commission Reports A. Operations Committee: Tuesday, November 29, 2022 (Council Members: Jensen (Chair), Cole, Neitzert, Soehl) Council Member Sarah Cole stated that the committee recommended a change to the travel policy, which will appear before the Council in the coming weeks. The committee also conducted a thorough review of the policies and procedures manual. Staff was given guidance to draft several new sections and amendments, all of which will be reviewed by the committee at a future meeting. Any proposed changes to the manual will be presented to the Council for final consideration. B. Siouxland Heritage Museum Board: Thursday, December 1, 2022 (Council Member Starr) Council Member Pat Starr indicated the meeting was used primarily as a holiday celebration to meet with staff. 3. Councilor Remarks Council Member Rich Merkouris stated that he would like to restart the "Coffee with a Councilor" program next year. He indicated that he would poll members to identify interest in signing up for certain months. 4. Presentations A. Traffic 101 by Andy Berg, City Engineer Presentation: Approximately 40 minutes followed by discussion  The mission of Street Operations is to move all modes of traffic safely and efficiently for all 202,000 residents of Sioux Falls and the surrounding areas using uniform and consistent devices so all users can understand them. The Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices is a federal document which regulates the uniform standards for traffic control nationwide and serves as a guiding tool in making traffic control decisions. Traffic Operations Engineer Heath Hoftiezer explained in detail how the regulations are used and some examples of them. Next, he reviewed assets owned, maintained, and managed by the City. There are approximately 43,000 traffic signs within City limits, most of which were purchased by the City. The City has the capability to produce signs internally and also manages a life cycle replacement program (approx. 15 years) for traffic signs. There are over 3,300 lane miles on Sioux Falls streets with pavement markings on arterial and collector streets; which include white and yellow striping, turning arrows, crosswalk markings, stop bars, and bicycle markings. In terms of traffic signals, the City currently maintains over 300 traffic controller cabinets, most of which include battery back-ups and whose signals have energy efficient LED bulbs. There are four Adaptive Traffic Systems throughout the City, with 130 fixed cameras, as well as other Camera Detection Systems employed to provide for traffic control. Overall, approximately 40% of signalized intersections have video detection, which helps with motorcycle and bicycle detection. The City has approximately 125 miles of fiber optic cable to support these systems (among other things). To maintain and manage these their assets, the City is using an Annual Traffic Count Program; which includes: annual painting of long line paint on collector and arterial streets, three to seven year maintenance of epoxy markings, seven to twelve year maintenance on preformed tape marking, and proactive traffic signal inspections. Hoftiezer explained how a variety of feedback is used to inform traffic control operations throughout the City. The team relies on survey data from residents in the region as well as direct communications with residents on a daily basis. Based on feedback received, Traffic Operations conducts different types of studies and analyses to develop suitable plans for areas that need improvement. He concluded the presentation by discussing the various technical tools used to study and make improvements to traffic control. Discussion followed about: the sign placement and replacement process; the use of roundabouts in the City; how the team manages the communications received from the public; light cycling on Minnesota Avenue; the success of street calming efforts; coordination with developers and other departments to manage traffic in or caused by construction projects; the plan for expanding the use of the adaptive traffic systems; and, challenges caused by inclement weather. 5. Public Comment Todd Winston expressed his concerns about traffic operations, the use of adaptive signal systems, and problems with light cycling through various corridors. 6. Adjournment Council Chair Curt Soehl adjourned the meeting at 5:20 p.m. Thomas M. Greco, City Clerk