Auburn Traffic Committee Meeting - January 20, 2026
Auburn Traffic Committee Meeting - January 20, 2026
The Auburn Traffic Committee met on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. in Room 10 of Auburn City Hall, with Zoom participation. Lt. Neri substituted for Police Chief Bryan Morrison, and Council Member Davis substituted for Council Member Sandy Amara; no Planning Commissioner representative was present. The committee reviewed residential traffic concerns on Aeolia/Darlington, Sunrise Ridge Circle, and Dairy Road, and heard a Fehr & Peers presentation on the city's draft Active Transportation Plan and Comprehensive Safety Action Plan.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No non-agenda public comment was offered.
Aeolia and Darlington Blind Corner
- Resident Harry, a 40-year homeowner at the Haswell House on the corner of Aeolia and Darlington, reported that children and some drivers cut the corner while turning from Darlington onto Aeolia, creating a semi-blind condition and a risk to people walking and biking. He said the newly repaved Aeolia roadway from the sewer/waterline project has encouraged faster driving.
- Harry proposed painted center-line and directional markings, similar to parking-lot markings at Wallpark, rather than stop signs. He said the four nearby property owners do not want stop signs and that stop signs are frequently ignored in Auburn.
- Public Works Director Mengil Deane acknowledged the issue was anticipated after the smoother roadway was completed, agreed stop signs were not the solution, and said pavement visibility markings could be installed quickly.
Sunrise Ridge Circle
- Resident Jordan was not in attendance. The committee noted his request for recent speed studies, citizen complaint history, and updates on traffic calming measures on Sunrise Ridge Circle.
- Police/Public Works staff agreed to review records and contact Jordan with available information; the item may return at the next meeting.
Fehr & Peers Presentation: Active Transportation Plan and Comprehensive Safety Action Plan
- Rob Hananochi, Fehr & Peers senior associate/project manager, and David Moore, transportation planner, presented draft findings for the city's ATP/CSAP, funded by the federal Safe Streets for All grant.
- Crash data from 2017-2023 shows bicyclists and pedestrians are involved in about 10% of all injury collisions but about 30% of fatal/serious injury collisions. State-owned roads are about 3% of Auburn's roadway miles but account for about 36% of injury collisions; city arterials are about 12% of miles but account for about 40% of injury collisions; local streets are about 72% of miles but account for about 8% of injury collisions.
- The presentation identified draft priority safety corridors and intersections, including locations on Auburn Folsom, Lincoln Way, Elm, Auburn Ravine Road, Nevada Street, and near Highway 49. Proposed countermeasures include curb extensions, chicanes, chokers/pinch points, edge lane roads, slip-lane elimination, and roundabouts.
- Staff noted speed bumps are not permitted under Auburn municipal code due to emergency vehicle response concerns; rumble strips and similar treatments may be alternatives.
- Committee and police feedback included elevating Finley/Aggard near the high school, treating Auburn Ravine and Elm as a high-priority, dangerous intersection, and reviewing visibility and crossing issues at Walsh/High, Lincoln/Forest Hill, Lincoln/East Electric, and Nevada/Chamberlain. Fehr & Peers said the methodology can be adjusted and the priority list expanded beyond the current 10 intersections.
- The proposed safety target is to reduce roadway fatalities and serious injuries by 25% from the 2023 baseline of 21 killed/seriously injured crashes every five years, with a goal of zero by 2045. The Traffic Committee was identified as the likely body to oversee implementation and progress reporting.
- Schedule: administrative drafts will go to city staff, draft plans are expected to be posted publicly in March or April, and city council adoption is targeted before the end of the second quarter/fiscal year.
Dairy Road Stop Signs
- An unnamed resident requested multiple stop signs along Dairy Road due to traffic concerns but was not in attendance.
- Public Works reported that the road was surveyed; side streets entering Dairy Road already have stop signs, and adding stop signs along Dairy Road would create unnecessary three- and four-way stops, increase stop/start traffic and noise, and would not address speeding. Other Dairy Road residents who commented on social media reportedly opposed the stop signs.
- Police offered enforcement, a speed data collector, and a speed feedback sign, particularly for the downhill section. Committee members noted stop signs are traffic control devices with specific warrants, not speed-control or traffic-calming devices.
Key Outcomes
- Aeolia/Darlington: Public Works will expedite placement of pavement visibility markings; no stop signs.
- Sunrise Ridge Circle: Police/Public Works will compile and share available speed study and complaint data with Jordan.
- CSAP/ATP: Fehr & Peers will incorporate committee feedback, adjust priority intersections as needed, and proceed with administrative drafts, public posting in spring, and council adoption before end of Q2. The Traffic Committee is expected to serve as the implementation oversight body.
- Dairy Road: Stop signs will not be pursued; Public Works and Police will consider enforcement, speed monitoring, and a speed feedback sign.
Meeting Transcript
Okay, so I'll start this meeting. It's 8 30. This is traffic committee on January 20th. Everybody in the room basically knows who they are, but we do have uh Mayor Davis on Zoom home with two sick kiddos. So she's probably gonna stay off camera most of the time. Um, but anybody maybe who's watching the video, I can uh let you know that we have Lieutenant Neri here who is uh subbing for the police chief. And uh council member Davis is subbing for uh council member Mara. Uh we do not have a representative from the planning commission here, and myself and Jonathan Wright are here. All right. So um public comment if anybody online, that's you, Mayor, or anybody in the room have any items to speak on that are not on the agenda. See none. We can uh start on the committee business. And the first item is the Aeolia and Darlington corner, which Harry will be speaking about. I came to T Sha Placer 40 years ago, bought uh uh house from the Albertazzies, which is known as the Haswell House, corner of Aeolia and Darlington. And we've observed many, many, many, many times. Darlington, eastbound where it meets Aolia coming down from Forest Hill Avenue. A map I can hand out that you can see where we're talking about. Kids cut that corner and cut the corner, you end up driving through the vegetation and it becomes blind. The uh intersection itself is not blind. Yep. The traffic is on the proper side of the road. So I'd like I have a suggestion that we maybe can address that. And then additionally, especially with the new asphalt up there for the sewer project on Aolia, people have just started going faster and faster. Come up with 220 Aeolia and see the stretch going away. All the approaches are curvy and they just they step on it. And um I'd like to see that addressed too, if if we can. Um so if you look at the handout that I have there, the critical things are the blue, the little blue line. Got a bigger top out and show that on this one, they're red. And there's plenty of room coming down Darlington to turn it up onto Aolia if you're on the right hand side of the road. And about more about half the cars are in the middle of the road, making that semi-blind for cars, and almost all the kids cut that corner. My wife's actually observed a kid hit a car head on and fly over the car. And just a couple of weeks ago, there was a mom with her four-year-old in a bike going down, using her feet to break, and her older son came down and just zoomed right around it. And we had a nice talk, and the next day, here he comes again. He sees me and yells, I forgot. Cuts the corner again. And if anybody's parked there, or if anybody's coming from Forest Hill down Aolia, it's it's gonna be a serious problem. So I don't know if it's a solution. The solution is to have everyone stay on the proper side of the road. Okay. But to have uh a double red line like they have in the parking lots at uh Wallpark, for example, have 10 or 12 feet double the red line. So that people could see there is a middle of the road. There's a right and an oncoming traffic sign. And then on the right hand side, a double arrow, one going left, one going right, which would be very visible because that's a downhill approaching Aeolia, and anything painted on the surface of the roadway would be visible. Um pretty much should talk to the four owners up there. Myself, the Arcalarius and Gazes, Newfellow, um brought on to them. No one wants stop signs up there. Uh for one thing, that would just kind of ruin the aspect of it. But you know, Auburn's like the endurance capital of the world, but also the running stop signs capital of the world. Yeah. Uh it's just there isn't a stop sign I haven't seen run at least a third of the time in our neighborhood.
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