Traffic Committee

Traffic Committee Agenda DPW Conference Room 4243 Remembrance Rd. NW. Tuesday, March 10, 2026 2:00 PM Committee Members: Scott Conners, P.E., City Engineer / Travis Mabry, P.E., Assistant City Engineer / Gary Postema, DPW Director / Keith Mankel, Police Chief / Shay Gallagher, City Manager / Melanie Grooters, City Commissioner Agency Representatives: Jason Cole, P.E., MDOT / Matt Van Dyke, Grand Rapids Traffic Safety Discussion Items 1. Maplerow South of Remembrance Speed Limit: Andrea Johnson, 1406 Maplerow, is concerned about speeding on Maplerow south of Remembrance. Current signage, radar trailer data, and recent changes to the state speed limit law will be reviewed. 2. Ferndale Parking: Dorthy Pater, 1483 Ferndale, is concerned about vehicles parking on both sides of Ferndale. This occurs during both day and evening school operations. Specific concerns include only one vehicle being able to make it down the street at a time, emergency vehicle access, and not being able to back into and out of her driveway. 3. Richmond East of Randall Parking: Discussion will occur regarding whether Richmond east of Randall should be posted No Parking. Vehicles associated with River City Auto are parking along the street, half on the road and half on the grass parkway. This creates rutting and maintenance challenges for the grass parkway. Vehicle access for the neighboring properties is also a concern. 4. Peach Ridge No Truck Signs on 4 Mile: The advanced waring No Truck and Dead End signs for Peach Ridge that are posted on 4 Mile are scheduled for replacement. Trucks utilizing Peach Ridge to try to access Northridge used to be a problem several years ago. However, the issue appears to have been resolved by increased signage and GPS map updates. Discussion will occur on whether these specific signs are still needed. 5. Bristol South of 3 Mile Design Speed: Discussion will occur on the design speed for the reconstruction of Bristol south of 3 Mile. The Page 1 of 30  design speed is typically set at 5 mph over the posted speed limit. The current speed limit on Bristol is 45 mph. Due to sight distance challenges related to the steep vertical curves in the area, a design speed of 50 mph is not achievable. 6. Fruit Ridge Railroad Island: When Fruit Ridge was reconstructed last year, the MDOT railroad safety office required the addition of a center concrete island at the approaches to the railroad tracks. The intent of the island is to discourage vehicles from trying to weave between the railroad crossing gates when they are lowered. Discussion will occur on bollard and/or sign placements to improve the delineation of the island. 7. GVMC Top 10 Intersections for Crashes: GVMC recently released their Top 10 intersections for crashes in the Grand Rapids metropolitan area in 2025. Lake Michigan and Ferndale is listed as the number one intersection for fatal and serious injury crashes. Safety concerns related to this intersection have occurred at past Traffic Committee meetings. Continued discussion on potential safety improvements in this area will occur. 8. Traffic Committee Supporting Documents 9. Informational Items: 1. 3 Mile / Fruit Ridge Turn Lane Pavement Markings: MDOT and Walker staff have been discussing possible minor adjustments to help smooth the radii of the turn lane pavement markings in the intersection. 2. Fruit Ridge Corridor Traffic Signal Timings: MDOT, Walker, and Grand Rapids traffic signal staff have been discussing adding the Fruit Ridge corridor to a future traffic signal timing optimization study. The goal is to coordinate and optimize the timing of the existing and new signals between 3 Mile and 4 Mile. We would like to include Fishbeck in the study, since they were involved in the modeling of the traffic signals near the I-96 ramp interchange. 3. GVMC Stop for Pedestrians Ordinance: The GVMC Regional Standardization Committee has been meeting for several months to discuss how to improve pedestrian and vehicular safety at crosswalks. The Committee’s recommendations are not yet final. However, it is looking like an emphasis will be placed on requiring vehicles to stop for pedestrians at marked crosswalks. 4. New MMUTCD: The state of Michigan has released a new version of the Michigan Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices. The 2025 edition replaces the previous 2011 edition. 10. Upcoming Meeting Schedule: June 9, 2026 DPW Conference Room 2:00 p.m September 8, 2026 DPW Conference Room 2:00 p.m Page 2 of 30  December 8, 2026 DPW Conference Room 2:00 p.m. Submitted by: Travis Mabry, P.E., Assistant City Engineer CC: City Commission / Deborah Goudy, City Clerk Page 3 of 30  1 - Maplerow South of Remembrance Page 4 of 30 Speed Limit Page 5 of 30 1406 Maplerow Page 6 of 30 Southbound Maplerow at 1406 Maplerow 22’ street width  2 - Ferndale Page 7 of 30 Parking Page 8 of 30 1483 Ferndale Page 9 of 30 Northbound Ferndale at 1483 Ferndale 26’ street width Page 10 of 30 3 - Richmond East of Randall Parking Page 11 of 30 Richmond East of Randall Page 12 of 30 Richmond East of Randall 22’ street width Page 13 of 30 4 - Peach Ridge No Truck Signs on 4 Mile Page 14 of 30 Gap on Peach Ridge South of 4 Mile Page 15 of 30 No Trucks Sign for Peach Ridge on Westbound 4 Mile (Similar Signs on Eastbound 4 Mile) Page 16 of 30 5 - Bristol South of 3 Mile Design Speed Page 17 of 30 Bristol South of 3 Mile Page 18 of 30 Vertical Curve on Bristol at Harding Page 19 of 30 6 - Fruit Ridge Railroad Island Page 20 of 30 Railroad Island on Fruit Ridge Page 21 of 30 Northbound Fruit Ridge at Railroad Island Page 22 of 30 Southbound Fruit Ridge at Railroad Island Page 23 of 30 South of Track Crossing Looking North Page 24 of 30 North of Track Crossing Looking North Page 25 of 30 7 - GVMC Top 10 Intersections for Crashes Page 26 of 30 Lake Michigan at Ferndale Page 27 of 30 Eastbound Lake Michigan at Ferndale Page 28 of 30 Westbond Lake Michigan at Ferndale Page 29 of 30 Northbound Meijer Drive at Lake Michigan Page 30 of 30 Southbound Ferndale at Lake Michigan