Title
Conduct a public hearing to consider an annual report regarding traffic volumes on Carmel Valley Road, pursuant to the 2010 General Plan, Carmel Valley Master Plan.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors:
a. Receive an annual report on 13 segments of Carmel Valley Road, pursuant to the 2010 General Plan, Carmel Valley Master Plan;
b. Accept the report for traffic volumes on Segments 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 10 of Carmel Valley Road as segments that are within 20% of their established threshold in the Carmel Valley Master Plan Policy CV-2.17; and
c. Find that the remaining segments do not meet the criterion to be evaluated annually.
SUMMARY:
Policies of the 2010 General Plan - Carmel Valley Master Plan (CVMP) require annual monitoring and reporting of traffic volumes and travel times on 13 segments of Carmel Valley Road. Monitoring occurs twice a year, generally in June (during the summer break for schools), and October (while schools are in session). If the annual monitoring reveals that traffic volumes exceed certain criteria, the Board of Supervisors (Board) must conduct a noticed public hearing.
The Resource Management Agency (RMA) monitors 13 road segments listed in CVMP Policy CV-2.17 (Policy 2.17) annually and is providing that information with this annual report. Monitoring has been completed and an evaluation report of traffic volumes on Carmel Valley Road and Rio Road has been prepared. Segments 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 10 of Carmel Valley Road are within 20% of the established threshold triggering the public hearing before the Board. However, these six (6) segments do not exceed the Average Daily Traffic (ADT) thresholds and the Percent-Time-Spent-Following (PTSF) thresholds are at the level of service D equal to the established threshold pursuant to Policy 2.17 of the 2010 General Plan. The remaining segments do not meet this criterion that triggers the need to be evaluated annually.
DISCUSSION:
Policy 2.17 requires bi-annual monitoring of peak hour traffic volumes on 13 established segments on Carmel Valley Road, numbered from east to west (locations shown in Attachment A). Segments 1-10 are located along Carmel Valley Road and segments 11-13 are located on Rio Road and Carmel Rancho Boulevard. Monitoring occurs once while school is not in session (June) and once while school is in session (October). The counts are conducted on all 13 segments, but an evaluation is only required on segments that are within 20% of the established threshold.
Traffic flow patterns were evaluated for the six (6) Segments using two (2) methods: Average Daily Traffic (ADT) and Percent-Time-Spent-Following (PTSF). Monitoring in 2018 was conducted between June 7 to 13 while school was in session and October 11 to 17 when school was not in session.
Policy, 2.17(c) requires that a public hearing before the Board in the year following data collection when only 100 or fewer ADT remain before the ADT count for a segment will equal or exceed the indicated threshold, or where the PTSF for a segment exceeds or is within one percent (1%) of the value that would cause a decrease in level of service. Segments 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 10 of Carmel Valley Road were identified to be within 20% of the established thresholds but have not exceeded the thresholds since the 2010 General Plan was adopted. For the 2018 study, all other segments were found not to be within 20% of the established thresholds and do not need to be added the list of required monitoring for the annual evaluation of 2019.
Attachment B displays the Average Daily Traffic (ADT) volumes for the six (6) required segments and the threshold value from the CVMP. For 2018, none of the segments exceed the established thresholds. The Percent-Time-Spent-Following (PTSF) values are also shown in Attachment B. Using peak hour volumes, the PTSF was calculated for Segments 3 through 7. Since Segment 10 is a four-lane highway the PTSF methodology does not apply and the level of service (LOS) is based on volumes only. None of the PTSF of the six (6) segments exceed the LOS D threshold established in section 2.17(f)(3)(b), however, Segments 5 and 6 are within 1% of the PTSF threshold value that would cause a decrease in the LOS.
Attachment C shows the percent under the threshold volumes and summarizes the ADT of all 13 segments. Segments 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 are shown to be within 20% of the established threshold. Segment 3 is within 1% of the established threshold volume for the month of June while all other segments remain under the established thresholds.
Policy 2.17(d) further requires that every five (5) years, Monterey County (County) shall examine the degree to which the estimates of changes to the LOS in the CVMP Area may be occurring earlier than predicted in the General Plan Environment Impact Report. This five (5) year analysis was conducted following the data collection of 2015, presented to the Board on October 18, 2016, and determined that no changes to the unit cap were needed. The next 5-year analysis will take place in 2020, with a report to the Board in 2021.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
This traffic volume analysis was reviewed and accepted by the Carmel Valley Road Committee (CVRC) at their December 20, 2018 meeting.
FINANCING:
Scheduled traffic monitoring activities for the CVMP, estimated at $8,000, are funded by the Carmel Valley Traffic Impact Fee Program. Sufficient funds are available in the Road Fund 002, Unit 8195, Appropriation Unit RMA0012 to finance this work.
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS STRATEGIC INITIATIVES:
By following the policies in the Carmel Valley Master Plan and conducting the required hearing, the County practices accountability and transparency.
__Economic Development
X Administration
__Health & Human Services
__Infrastructure
X Public Safety
Prepared by: Randell Ishii, M.S., P.E., RMA Chief of Public Works
Approved by: Neville Pereira, P.E., CBO, Interim Deputy Director of Public Works, Parks, and
Facilities
Approved by: Carl P. Holm, AICP, RMA Director
The following attachments are on file with the Clerk of the Board:
Attachment A - Location Map
Attachment B - Average Daily Traffic and Percent Time Spent Following
Attachment C - Percent Under Threshold
Attachment D - Notice of Public Hearing
Attachment E - Power Point Presentation