Menlo Park is moving forward with a project to slow down drivers on a road near Hillview Middle School.
The City Council on Tuesday unanimously authorized the installation of four speed humps on North Lemon Avenue between Santa Cruz and Valparaiso avenues in the Central Menlo neighborhood for a six-month trial period.
The estimated cost for installing the speed humps, signs and two decorative planters that will serve as gateways at the Santa Cruz and Valparaiso intersections is $30,000, to be paid out of the city’s Measure A funds.
The justification for the experiment came through an 18-month study of the road that began in April 2015. Staff found that 85 percent of drivers travel 32 mph in the southbound direction on a street that has a 25 mph speed limit, even though there are no posted speed-limit signs along the road.
The study came at the request of some of the 43 households along the street, 70 percent of which said they support the plan. North Lemon sees an average of 822 vehicles on the road each day, though no collisions were reported between 2014 and 2016.
The city will begin soliciting bids for the project, which is to use materials that can easily be removed if the experiment doesn’t justify a permanent change. The speed humps will be constructed of asphalt concrete that could remain permanent, and the city already has the planters for the gateways. Construction is expected to last approximately three months after the city choose a contractor.
North Lemon is a two-way road with on-street parking available on both sides. It is an emergency response route for the Menlo Park Fire Protection District, but doesn’t feature center striping, a standard sidewalk, curbs or gutters. The speed humps will have cut-outs for emergency vehicles.
