Street work throughout San Jose is set to beginthis summer after the City Council approved $7.7 million in road maintenance and improvement costs at a May 2 meeting.
About 89 miles of major streets across the city, including Minnesota, Curtner, Hicks and Hamilton avenues in District 6, will beresurfaced and get new markings when completed, according to a transportation department memo.Theyre amongfour major pavement projects scheduled forthis year.
Leigh, Union, Jarvis and Narvaez avenues in districts 9 and 10 are slated for work as well.
But the biggest change will happenon Hedding Street, which first must be resealed to extend itslife and reduce long-term maintenance costs. After that, the travel lanes will bereduced from four to three with a center lane along a 1.4-mile stretch from Winchester Boulevard to Coleman Street. However, some lanes approaching signalized intersections such as Winchester, Monroe Street and Bascom and Coleman avenues will be left alone to accommodate heavy traffic.
Plans for the lane reduction began in 2012, when the stretch of Hedding between highways 87 and 101 was narrowed to one lane each way. Buffered bike lanes and enhanced crosswalks will also be added as part of a citywide effort to make it safer for pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists.
District 6 Councilwoman Devora Dev Davis said thats been a common wish of neighbors in the Rose Garden area.
When I was campaigning and knocking on doors in that neighborhood there were a lot of requests for additional safe crosswalks, Davis said in an interview.
Some residents reaffirmed that sentiment at a community meeting held last week at Hoover Middle School in the Rose Garden neighborhood, but others felt differently. The latter lamented the loss of on-street parking at the intersections of Winchester, The Alameda, Monroe and Bascom, and expressed concern about people cutting through side streets to avoid traffic.
I heard from residents who were concerned about possible diversions of traffic to other streets, Davis said. But I also heard from a lot of residents that theyre excited about the prospect of a safer street, the accessibility of that neighborhood to the north getting to the school, as well as the Rose Garden.
I also heard from commuters that commute by bike that they will do so more often because they have a safer way to do so, she added.
Various factors were considered before the decision was made to proceed with the project, including existing vehicle speeds, traffic volume and collision history, according to transportation department staff. Division manager Jessica Zenk said pedestrian safety in particular has been one of the key drivers for the change, noting that a pedestrian was hit and killed by a car in January at the intersection of Hedding and Bellerose Drive.
A construction schedule has not yet been set, but because four schoolsBellarmine College Preparatory, Lincoln High School, Hoover Middle School and Trace Elementary Schoolare all close to Hedding, Davis said the city aims to do the workonce summer break arrives. The project will be funded from the citys general fund and capital improvements program and Measure B revenue.
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San Jose: Road diet, bikes lanes planned for Hedding - The Mercury News
