Stop — or maybe not
A southbound driver passes a newly installed stop sign at 15th Street and Deerhaven Avenue in Dalton Gardens in April. Traffic woes will continue to be a hot topic in Dalton Gardens in the year ahead, as well as preserving town character and government transparency.
BILL BULEY/Press File
DALTON GARDENS — Dave Trojan watched as the northbound truck approached the new stop sign at 15th Street and Deerhaven Avenue. The driver slowed, ever so slightly, then rolled through.
“Cell phone in hand, doing 35,” Trojan said Thursday, shaking his head.
In the 15 minutes Trojan stood near the front fence of his home, he saw several vehicles blow through the stop sign on the east side of the street marked with red flags. One he estimated was doing about 50 mph — the speed limit is 25. Another driver did a rolling stop, then gunned the engine and raced north up 15th.
Several seemed to be oblivious of the new stop sign and casually cruised past it.
Trojan, a 30-year resident near the intersection, has long watched drivers go well beyond the speed limit. They have zoomed past his property routinely in the 35 to 40 mph range. Lately, they seem even more aggressive and in more of a hurry. It’s unsafe — for pedestrians, cyclists and cars — and needs to change.
“I don’t know why speed limits and stop signs are optional,” Trojan said.
He hopes the new stop sign will help, but has doubts.
“I think it will,” he said. “Hopefully it slows people down.”
Dalton Gardens also put in a new stop sign at 15th and Wilbur. And it recently held a workshop aimed at getting ideas to solve the traffic congestion and speeding problems in Dalton Gardens.
Speed humps, speed tables, narrowing lane widths and traffic circles are considerations.
Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Ryan Higgins said deputies patrol Dalton Gardens and watch for speeders, particularly on Fourth and 15th streets, which are popular as alternatives to the more crowded U.S. 95 and Government Way.
One of the biggest complaints KCSO receives from Dalton Gardens residents is about speeding.
He said they have recorded drivers going 70 mph in the early morning hours, such as 2 and 3 a.m. The majority drive in the upper 30s.
KCSO is trying to get drivers to ease their foot off the gas pedal.
“The city streets in Dalton Gardens are a problem” when it comes to drivers going too fast, Higgins said.
A citation for failing running a stop sign runs about $155 plus court costs.
All Trojan is asking, he says, is that drivers respect Dalton Gardens.
“This is a nice place,” he said.
Dalton Gardens Mayor Dan Edwards could not be reached for comment.