Department of Public Works s1
Department of Public Works
Infrastructure Services – Traffic Engineering
Evaluation Categories
For
Safe Routes to School
Safety Improvement Recommendations
RECOMMENDATION KEY CHART
“A” Will Be Implemented
“B” Alternative Measure Suggested
“C” Can Be Implemented, Not Recommended
“D” Cannot Be Implemented
“E” Implemented by Others
“F” Investigate
“G” Already In Use
MILWAUKEE SAFE ROUTES CAMPAIGN
POLICIES
HOPKINS STREET SCHOOL
B / 1. / Discourage parent drop-off by prohibiting cars from stopping at school.C / 2. / Establish a city-wide 25 MPH policy on streets that pass through residential areas.
E / 3. / Emphasize enforcement of posted speed in the neighborhood.
E / 4. / Work with the Helping Hands program of the Milwaukee Public Schools to establish safe havens for walking kids.
E / 5. / Currently, bicycling to school is not permitted. Introduce bike safety training for children, train motorists to be aware of bicyclists, improve neighborhood safety and create a safe place to lock up bikes so that children can experience the joy of biking to school.
BROWING SCHOOL
C / 1. / Ensure that ever planning, engineering and construction decision made in Police District 4 is designed to slow cars to safe speeds that invite other modes (walking, bicycling, and transit). Speeding is the biggest issue in Police District 4.F / 2. / Evaluate the location of school bus loading and unloading. Consider moving buses to Custer Ave. end at lot.
E / 3. / When school ends, release walkers first, bus riders second, and those picked up by car last. (This practice rewards walkers.)
E / 4. / Ask Housing Authority to apply sand to icy sidewalks for better traction.
WESTSIDE ACADEMY II
E / 2. / Encouraging children to walk to school and making it safe for them to do so should be the cultural norm.
E / 3. / Enforce city ordinances regarding property maintenance. Bill landlords on the tax roll where city must expend staff time and expenses for clean-up, etc.
E / 4. / Invite local residents to help with neighborhood sidewalk clearing days (to trim back trees and shrubs, edge of grass, etc.).
E / 5. / Any driver in a pedestrian/vehicle crash must attend “defensive drive education program” that would include pedestrian and bicycle safety and driving behaviors that endanger children and seniors. Drivers could lower points on their citation by attending.
F,C / 6. / Establish a 15 mph zone within a 3-block radius of any school during the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
SHERMAN MULTICULTURAL ARTS SCHOOL
E / 1. / Ticket speeders, especially at N. 51st Street & W. Locust Street.F,E / 2. / Create a pull-in area on N. 52nd Street so that children have a safe place to enter a car that comes to pick them up and waiting cars don’t block traffic.
F,G / 3. / Wherever walk buttons are used, make them demand responsive for pedestrians.
D / 4. / Designate a bike lane on the sidewalk.
C / 5. / Convert intersection to a four way stop at N. 52nd St. & W. Locust St.
D / 6. / Convert N. 51st and 52nd Streets between W. Locust and W. Chambers Street into one-way (direction north) streets around Sherman School.
C / 7. / Install flashing school zone light.
FOREST HOME AVENUE SCHOOL
E / 1. / Collaborate with school officials to identify “safe walkways” and communicate the specific school plan and procedures to students, parents, and the transportation company.E / 2. / Change the city ordinance to allow crossing guards to carry and use STOP signs.
E / 3. / Stagger dismissal times so that walkers get to leave first (this rewards walking.)
E / 4. / Ask MPD for heavy enforcement of parking and traffic violations.
E / 5. / Repeat parking violation offenders should pay larger fines.
E / 6. / Determine appropriate “consequence action” for repeated violation of school traffic procedures by parents.
E / 7. / Use outcome of parking analysis (above) to review old and/or develop new faculty parking policy.
E / 8. / Offer incentives to staff to use public transportation and reduce parking burden.
E / 9. / Change student entry for bussed students to S. 15th St. school entrance to avoid more children converging on already congested are at S. 15th and Forest Home Av.
E / 10. / Is the S. 15th St. entrance to the school open so that children can enter/leave to traveling by school bus and/or being dropped off/picked up by car?
E / 11. / Exert pressure on those who don’t conform to safety requirements.
E / 12. / Hold evening activities at the school so that the school becomes the center of neighborhood.
A,F / 13. / No parking on S. Burnham between alley and 15th St.
DOERFLER SCHOOL
C / 2. / Try 15 minute parking in 4 spaces on each adjacent block for pick-up and drop-off and unloading.
F,A / 3. / Prohibit parking to drop off or pick up children.
E / 4. / Dismissal times are stagger now, students board busses at 2:30 and walkers are released 2:40. Consider releasing walkers first as a reward and encouragement.
E / 5. / Send bus riders out of one door and walkers out of another door when dismissing them from school.
C / 6. / Post 15 minute parking restriction wherever pick-up or drop-off occurs.
D / 7. / Retain a small number of “all day” spaces (for use as needed, one for teacher of the month or for the teacher who walked the most that month).
F,C / 8. / If all day parking is permitted, designate S. 31 St a one-way street to avoid congestion and danger of children running in front of cars traveling in both directions.
E / 9. / Safe Routes to School policy for new businesses (required by code to build in a pedestrian friendly and accessible way, e.g., bike parking, “rollable,” pedestrian safe signals).
E / 10. / Ensure that food and beverage vendors do not obstruct traffic at dismissal time.
Department of Public Works
Infrastructure Services – Traffic Engineering
Evaluation Categories
For
Safe Routes to School
Safety Improvement Recommendations
RECOMMENDATION KEY CHART
“A” Will Be Implemented
“B” Alternative Measure Suggested
“C” Can Be Implemented, Not Recommended
“D” Cannot Be Implemented
“E” Implemented by Others
“F” Investigate
“G” Already In Use
MILWAUKEE SAFE ROUTES CAMPAIGN
PROJECTS
Project: an organized effort requiring planning and/or resources that is designed to improve conditions for walking (and bicycling)
FOREST HOME AVENUE SCHOOL – MPD POLICE DISTRICT TWO
F / 1. / Conduct school zone parking study and traffic pattern analysis for quick action to paint stop bars and/or legislate new parking restrictions. (PRIORITY)2. / Repaint crosswalks to increase visibility. (PRIORITY)
C / 3. / Move MCTS bus stop off at the Forest Home Av. island. Review location of other MCTS bus stops in the area. (PRIORITY)
E / 4. / Convert small portion of S. 15th St. (Forest Home Av., to W. Burnham St) to green space. (PRIORITY)
C / 5. / Use traffic calming to slow traffic from S. 13th St. to S. 16th St. and east and west on Forest Home Av. Close the road occasionally for special events (3-4 times per year), and/or at school arrival and dismissal times. Consider closing Forest Home Av. to car traffic between S. 13th St. and S. 16th St. Replace 4-way stop at S. 14th St. and Forest Home Av with a traffic circle. (PRIORITY project & policy)
E / 6. / Develop a comprehensive transportation plan for the neighborhood and school that promotes more walking.
F / 7. / Install curb extensions on W. Historic Mitchell St. and S. 15th St. & S. 15th Pl.
F / 8. / Install curb extensions on Forest Home Av at S. 15th St.
F / 9. / Install curb extensions on W. Burnham St. at S. 15th Pl.
F / 10. / 15th Place
E / a. Conduct study of S. 15th Pl. This is the area where parents leave their cars parking in the street to escort their children into the building (parents are required to sign children in, but participants asked if it is absolutely necessary; is there another way to ensure health and safety?). Evaluate parking needs of residents, business owners, and school staff. Evaluate drop-off requirements and needs for Head Start program at Forest Home Avenue School.
E / b. Designate up to 8 angle parking spaces on S. 15th Pl. as Head Start parking only during the hours of 7:30am-4:30pm when fewer neighborhood residents are using the spaces.
F / c. Consider removing angle parking to create a drop-off lane. Study viable options for construction of a one-way “car pool” loop on the playground to be used before and after school. Ideas mentioned: gates, cut-ins, cones/striping, student assembly line.
C / 11. / Consider making S. 15th St. one way.
C / 12. / Use raised crosswalks around schools.
D / 13. / Mark crossing areas with bright colored paint.
D / 14. / Have the children paint the crosswalks.
C / 15. / Consider using removable speed bumps to slow traffic.
16. / Use cones and barriers to promote safety for children crossing the street and getting on and off school buses.
F / 17. / “Wild concept” of making a grand pedestrian mall by closing some roads to car traffic, specifically Forest Home Av., S. 13th St. to 16th St., and S.15th Pl.
A / 18. / Add a stop bar at S. 15th St. & Forest Home Av.
WESTSIDE ACADEMY II – MPD POLICE DISTRICT THREE
E / 2. / Encourage the groups listen in #3 as well as master gardeners to plant greenery to enhance park laws/terraces and areas around school and the neighborhood. (PRIORITY)
E / 3. / Encourage neighborhood groups, service groups and children to do neighborhood clean-ups (objectives: beautification, physical activity, community connectedness, fresh air).
C / 4. / Use rumble strips at intersections in a 3 block radius of schools. (Provide a rumble free zone for bicycles.)
D / 5. / Use actual steel “rails” to replace striped crosswalks. Raise rails up a bit to get cars to slow down. Add railroad gates.
C / 6. / Add flashing lights to “school zone” signs that operate for one hour before the start of school and for one hour after school is dismissed.
D / 7. / Make creative use of bulb-outs (page 24), medians (page 33) and traffic mini-circles (page 41). (Page numbers refer to Streets and Sidewalks, People and Cars by Dan Burden.) Consider traffic mini-circles at the following locations: W. Brown St. at N. 29th St., N. 31st St., N. 33rd St., N. 37th St. and N. 39th St.; W. Vine St. at N. 32nd St., N. 34th St. Consider medians along W. Lisbon Av. or convert the avenue into a boulevard.
F / 8. / Do streetscape work on W. Lisbon Av. between N. 34th St. and N. 38th St.
D / 9. / Calm traffic by using a boulevard treatment on W. Lisbon Av. and Appleton Av.
A / 10. / W. Lisbon Av. at N. 36th Street is a difficult intersection. Cars park to the corner, making it difficult to see. Use cones to slow traffic temporarily (or during transportation times to and from school). Add bulb-outs or curb extensions to reduce crossing distance, make children more visible, slow cars down and keep cars from parking too close to the crosswalk.
E / 11. / Concern was expressed about the safety of MCTS bus stop locations. Ask MCTS to review all bus stops near schools.
F / 12. / Consider a drop-off area on school property on W. Brown St. between N. 36th St. and N. 37th St. near Crossing Guard Sylvia Ferguson’s corner (see map for sketch of idea).
BROWNING SCHOOL – MPD POLICE DISTRICT FOUR
D / 1. / Immediately contact the aldermen and DPW to request that a speed table be included in front of Browning School on 64th Street (at West Birch Avenue) as part of the resurfacing of 64th Street. If speed table is feasible, then design it to slow speeds and make children more visible as they cross the street. This key, time-is-of-the-essence element is part of a comprehensive engineering approach recommended around Browning School to make the area more walkable and to slow/reduce motor vehicle traffic (see other workshop recommendations). (PRIORITY)C / 2. / Use flashing school zone lights as a tool to raise awareness as other improvements are made around the school (see other workshop recommendations). (PRIORITY)
A / 3. / Add bright yellow/green school zone signs. (PRIORITY)
D / 4. / Ask MCTS to move or eliminate bus stop at 64th Street & W. Birch Ave. (PRIORITY)
C / 5. / Change the front-in angle parking on W. Birch Ave to back-in angle parking to improve motorist’s visibility of children and other cars. Adopt back-in angle parking as the new standard at all angled parking locations. (PRIORITY policy & project)
6. / Analyze parking (practices, availability and issues) around school, neighborhood, and in area of W. Silver Spring Drive. Recommendations include:
F / a. No parking Westside of 64th Street.
F / b. Custer Ave.: one side parking.
D / c. N. 63rd & W. Birch Ave.: double back-in angle parking.
d. Parking south side of green space. [What does this mean?]
E / e. Build parking structures at 64th & Sheridan and 64th & Custer (teacher parking lot), with retail on the first floor. Include personal safety in design.
F / 7. / Take a comprehensive approach to calm traffic in the neighborhood and promote walking and bicycling as part of daily routine.
a. Add mini traffic circles throughout neighborhood. Potential locations drawn:
i. Custer Ave. at N. 61st, N. 64th, N. 67th, Sheridan
ii. W. Sheridan Ave. at N. 68th, Custer, N. 64th, N. 61st
iii. N. 68th & N. Strathmore Ave.
D / b. Add pedestrian walkway from 68th to 60th Streets, parallel to Custer Ave. (likely to require planned, long-term purchase of right of way)
F / c. Put a pedestrian crossing sign in the middle of the road on 64th at Birch & Sheridan.
F / 8. / Add a loading zone in front of the Silver Spring Neighborhood Center (SSNC) for use by seniors and the food pantry.
C / 9. / Giant lighted sing (like DOT uses on expressways) “Slow Down, School Zone” posted at 64th & Silver Spring and 64th & Custer.
C / 10. / Consider extending 63rd from Custer to Sheridan (currently a pedestrian way), and make it 2-way.
11. / Improvements in the area of W. Silver Spring Drive
F / a. Replace walk/don’t walk signals with countdown signals
C / b. Eliminate service drive.
F / c. Add curb extensions to protect parking areas and make pedestrians more visible, median safe harbors for slower walkers, raised walkways (speed tables).
E / d. Build a village center with the police district in it, and put the building up to the street with parking behind it (SS between 60th & 64th).
E / e. Bring all of the businesses up to the curb with parking in back. Eliminate front lot parking to encourage pedestrian access.
C,D / f. Build a pedestrian overpass at SS & 64th and at 61st to access the Osco store.
12. / Economic Development
E / a. Attract more function/better businesses: Cleaners, healthy, family restaurants and grocers (fewer alcohol shops and fast food places)
E / b. Redevelop substandard (was originally “temporary”) housing at 60th & Thurston, invite Habitat for Humanity to take this on as a project.
E / c. Limit the store operations: now open too late, attracts bad elements.
E / d. Increase enforcement to eliminate bad elements.
HOPKINS STREET SCHOOL – MPD POLICE DISTRICT FIVE