Traffic humps were installed on Hogan's Bend even though a study showed speeding was not a problem. Sometimes it's a "quality-of-life issue," the county's traffic director says.
By MICHAEL VAN SICKLER
Published May 2, 2003
PEBBLE CREEK - Shaped like a horseshoe, Hogan's Bend looks even more subdued than the typical street out here in this sleepy subdivision.
The only movements on a recent afternoon were yard work and relaxation.
"The only traffic we see during the late morning or early afternoon is UPS or FedEx," said Jim Atchley, a Michigan snowbird who has lived on Hogan's Bend for 15 years. "That's about it. Is speeding a problem? Not really."
But practically all of the homeowners along Hogan's Bend, including Atchley, signed a petition that persuaded the Hillsborough County Commission to approve two 3-inch high speed humps on opposite ends of the road.
"Yeah, I signed it," Atchley said. "I was concerned. Once in a while a kid will come through here racing, gassing it up. It's not terribly bad, though."
Commissioners approved the humps despite a study that showed that speeding was not a problem and a warning from the Hillsborough County Fire Rescue department that the humps would slow down response times by 10 seconds for each hump.
With more than $300,000 to spend every year on slowing residential traffic, the county relies on more than just science to determine which roads need fixing, said Peter Brett, the county's director of traffic.
"You go into these subdivisions and you get very few crashes," Brett said. "And what you end up looking at are quality-of-life issues. It's not a strict engineering issue that you see when putting speed limits on highways. Traffic calming is more perceived danger than reality."
Last year, Pebble Creek residents contacted county officials to complain about the speeding along Hogan's Bend.
The county held a hearing in February where all residents who attended spoke in favor of the humps. The problem is that several teens who speed have been visiting friends who live on the street, said Judith Weir, who signed the petition. Many times they'll speed from one end of the street to the other, she said.
"I wouldn't say they are racing or cruising," Weir said. "They're just getting from one end of the street to the next at a high rate of speed."
A couple of months ago, Weir's cat, Faith, was killed in front of her house by a car. She said she doesn't know who did it. More than cats are in danger, Weir said. The street doesn't have sidewalks, and the so-called bend is a sharp turn that could claim one of the many kids who skateboard and bike in the neighborhood, she said.
But according to a study done in September, most motorists obeyed the street's 25 mph speed limit.
On Sept. 3, between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m., 35 of 39 cars were clocked at 25 mph or less. Two cars were measured at 30 mph. Two more were faster than 35 mph. On the westbound lane, only one car out of 78 cars was clocked moving faster than the speed limit during a 24-hour period.
Weir was unimpressed with the findings.
"All it takes is that one," Weir said. "That's what we're trying to prevent."
Jerry Dabkowski, the hearing master who recommended the humps to commissioners, said the teens visiting their friends have become a problem.
"When you have outsiders like that coming into the community, it's very dangerous," Dabkowski said. "It's a very tight corner and you really can't take those corners even at 25 mph."
But Dabkowski acknowledged that the speeding on the street didn't qualify for the humps. Instead, it was the number of cars that created a need for speed humps, he said.
County officials say a typical home produces about 10 car trips a day. With 31 homes on Hogan's Bend, that would allow 310 trips a day.
The study, however, showed traffic volumes of no more than 151 total daily trips.
Even without excessive speeding or daily traffic, a road can qualify for speed humps, according to county policy, if one hour of the day produces more than 12 percent of the road's daily traffic.
In the case of Hogan's Bend, that hour was between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., when 54 cars drove the road, an average of 18 percent.
Speed humps will discourage unnecessary visits, Dabkowski said.
"Speed bumps decrease not just speed, but also volume," he said. "You have people racing around Hogan's Bend right now. With bumps, they're not going to like doing that anymore."
