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File Number: 12 -043 <br />The upcoming traffic signal improvement project at the Washington Avenue /Monterey <br />Boulevard intersection provided staff with an opportunity to correct this additional issue. Staff <br />approached the Floresta Homeowners Association to explore the possibility of eliminating the <br />left -turn restriction. After conducting resident surveys, the officers of the Floresta Homeowners <br />Association concurred with staff's recommendation to lift the northbound left -turn restriction. <br />Analysis <br />Traffic Engineering records indicate that the two northbound left -turn restriction signs from <br />Washington Avenue onto Monterey Boulevard and onto Anza Way date back to the 1960s. <br />Staff believes the reason these signs were installed was the traffic signal at the Floresta <br />Boulevard /Washington Avenue intersection lacked roadway handling capacity and was an <br />inefficient traffic signal. The northbound left -turn volume on Washington Avenue at Floresta <br />Boulevard was too high and caused traffic to form an unregulated third lane, which created <br />traffic jams back to Monterey Boulevard during the peak morning commute. With strong <br />support from residents of the Floresta Homeowners Association, the City Council adopted <br />Ordinance No. 1327 N.S. on July 7, 1961, posting the northbound left -turn restrictions <br />between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. from Washington Avenue onto Monterey Boulevard and onto Anza <br />Way. <br />Until 1991, the Floresta Homeowners Association was opposed to merchants' requests to lift <br />the left -turn restrictions. However, traffic and roadway conditions on Washington Avenue and <br />at the Washington Avenue /Floresta Boulevard intersection have improved since the signs <br />were installed. The aforementioned traffic problems on Washington Avenue disappeared with <br />the addition of a double left -turn pocket in 1995 -1996. n addition, the continuing left -turn <br />restriction at the Washington Avenue /Monterey Boulevard intersection has created a negative <br />safety impact. Traffic data collected on November 29, 2011 shows that there were about 27 <br />violators of the turn restriction during the morning peak hours. <br />With this new data, and with the support of the Floresta Homeowners Association, staff <br />recommends lifting the left -turn restrictions from Washington Avenue onto Monterey <br />Boulevard and onto Anza Way. <br />Previous Action(s) <br />On July 7, 1961, City Council adopted Ordinance No. 1327 N.S. posting the northbound <br />left -turn restrictions between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. from Washington Avenue onto Monterey <br />Boulevard and onto Anza Way <br />On May 5, 1978, City Council adopted Ordinance No. 78 -26 maintaining the same left -turn <br />restrictions between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. from Washington Avenue onto Monterey Boulevard <br />and onto Anza Way, but allowing buses to make the left turns <br />Summary Of Public Outreach Efforts <br />Staff notified the Floresta Homeowners Association and received a letter and an email from its <br />officers supporting staff's recommendation for eliminating the left -turn restriction from <br />northbound Washington Avenue onto Monterey Boulevard and Anza Way. <br />City of San Leandro Page 2 Printed on 212812012 <br />