Transportation Committee (TC) Meeting Minutes, Tuesday, July 18, 2023 

Present: Mary Day Mordecai (chair), Barbara Watkins, Earl Horn, Alison Weber, Ned Hulbert, Steve LaMears; Missing: Erin Hammerstedt 

The following agreements were made:  

1) TC to Jeff Grosner for his Lake Assn Executive meeting:

TC and Police Chief have been working on this over several meetings.  We need to go slow and build commitment for realistic next steps.  TC and Police Chief will propose an integrated plan for improving Hancock Rd safety to SB on 7/28.

Hancock Road is an old road that has been widened over time. Both the number of houses and the volume of vehicle, pedestrian and bicycle traffic has grown dramatically.  We believe that the road can be safely shared if all users accept and honor specific guidelines.  We need to educate everyone to use the road with safe guidelines.

We expect to encourage pedestrians on the road to consider these initial simple steps:

  • Walk on lake side of road only
  • Pedestrians should walk single file when vehicles approach from either direction
  • Pedestrians must yield to vehicles and step off road as needed

On 7/28 TC and Police Chief will propose an integrated plan to SB to improve Hancock Road safety

Enforcement:

  • Numerous residents and the Skatutakee Lake Association Executive Committee have requested a regular police presence issuing warnings and tickets to vehicles exceeding the speed limit. The Police Chief has agreed to honor this request as police schedules permit.
  • Chief LaMears has also recently installed the town’s moveable speed radar on Hancock Road to slow traffic and collect data about speeds. 

Road Improvements:

  • At sharp curves in road, put solid yellow line or raised dots in middle of road to ensure that vehicles stay in their lane; this will encourage a slower speed.
  • Do some brush clearing on the non-lake side of road at specific locations to improve long-distance sight lines so that vehicles can slow down more quickly – and pedestrians/bikers can step off the road for approaching vehicles, as needed.
  • Build up shoulders on the road’s lake-side where needed to improve safety for pedestrians/bicyclists.

More signage:

  • Erect Boat Ramp signs on either side of Boat Ramp.
  • Consider painting “SLOW” onto road surface in approach to boat ramp from each direction.
  • Add more 25 mph speed limit signs (total of 3 in each direction is proposed: one at either end and one in middle of road –for east and west facing traffic).
  • Two special pedestrian signs at either end of lake approach (noting pedestrians, congested area, curves, etc).
  • Consider adding some sort of board/kiosk at either end of lake approach noting a set of simple guidelines for pedestrians and bicyclists.

Education

  • Work with Lake Association to educate drivers and pedestrians/bikers on specific guidelines for the road.
  • Run periodic articles in Common Threads on guidelines for Hancock Road each spring/summer season. due to its special constraints and safety challenges.