Thursday, March 28, 2024
39.0°F

Motorists: Slow down in Dalton Gardens

by Taryn Thompson
| March 3, 2014 8:00 PM

DALTON GARDENS - Traffic calming might seem like an oxymoron, but Dalton Gardens city officials hope it is the key to preserving the town's rural roots.

The city is seeking a grant for a "traffic calming" project aimed at slowing traffic on Fourth Street from Dalton Avenue to Prairie Avenue. Sandwiched between Coeur d'Alene and Hayden, the city's stretch of Fourth Street is fronted by residential homes and mini farms on acre-sized lots.

At 25 mph, the city's speed limit is lower than the other cities' portions of Fourth Street. City Councilman Steve Roberge said the majority of drivers don't bother to slow down as they pass through Dalton Gardens.

"There are people passing by about 50 mph when I'm out walking," Roberge said, adding that some residents still ride horseback along the road. "It's very dangerous. It's very scary."

Roberge lives near the intersection of Hanley Avenue and Fourth.

If the city is approved for a Community Choices grant through the Idaho Department of Transportation, the city would attempt to slow drivers using "visual cues" and landscaping such as a treed median between the northbound and southbound lanes of Fourth Street.

Some property owners along Fourth Street have expressed concerns about whether the project would encroach on their property, affect access and impact property values.

Roberge said the city doesn't want to block driveways and is hoping the project, if approved, would have a "minimal impact on residents."

Though an engineer's rendering has been circulated showing the street divided by a landscaped median with 5-foot-wide bike lanes on both sides of the road, Roberge said that is just one example of what a calming measure might look like.

"I think it's a great idea, personally," he said. "I know this type of design works really well."