That the City Council:

A. Approve the City of La Habra 2023 Engineering and Traffic Survey prepared by RK Engineering Group, Inc., dated September 29, 2023; and,

B. Approve and adopt RESOLUTION NO. CC 2024-__ ENTITLED:  A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LA HABRA ESTABLISHING SPEED ZONES ON CERTAIN CITY STREETS AND RESCINDING ALL PREVIOUS ESTABLISHED SPEED ZONES OF THOSE CERTAIN STREETS.

Local cities in the State of California are required to conduct engineering and traffic surveys (E&TS) every five years on those streets where the Police Department conducts speed enforcement per the California Vehicle Code (CVC). Furthermore, the CVC sets forth specific criteria which, if followed, will extend the survey frequency from a five-year period to a seven-year period and, in some cases, 10 to 14 years, for when an E&TS can be used as justification for a maximum speed limit. The City of La Habra's current E&TS is dated March 7, 2017, and includes traffic surveys that were completed from April through July 2016.  As previously directed by the City Council, staff conducts an E&TS every five years.

In August 2023, staff retained RK Engineering Group, Inc. to prepare the City of La Habra 2023 Engineering & Traffic Survey (see Attachment 1). The survey was conducted in accordance with the requirements of the CVC and the procedures outlined in the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (CA MUTCD).  Additionally, speed limits have been set in accordance with Section 40802 of the CVC and the CA MUTCD. The survey report considered speed surveys, traffic counts, roadway evaluations, and accident analysis in making recommendations regarding speed limits within the City.  Staff reviewed the report and concurs with the conclusions and recommendations. 
  Based on the survey results, staff recommends decreasing the speed limit on four roadway segments. No speed limit increases are being recommended at this time. The roadway segments that are recommended for a speed limit reduction include:
 

Street	Roadway Segment	Existing Speed Limits	Proposed Street Limits
Citrus Drive	North City Limit to Whittier Boulevard	30 MPH	25 MPH
Walnut Street	North City Limit to Whittier Boulevard	30 MPH	25 MPH
Walnut Street	Whittier Boulevard to La Habra Boulevard	30 MPH	25 MPH
Walnut Street	La Habra Boulevard to Lambert Road	30 MPH	25 MPH

There are two primary characteristics of prevailing speed data that are important in the selection of a reasonable speed limit. The 85th Percentile Speed is the speed at or below which 85 percent of the traffic is moving in the sample survey, and the 10 MPH range of speeds containing the largest number of observations in the sample survey. The speeds recorded on Citrus Drive and Walnut Street in the roadway segments described in the table above were under the 85th Percentile Speed of 25 MPH; therefore, staff is recommending the reduction in speed on these two streets. On January 29, 2024, the Traffic Committee considered this matter and concurred with the preliminary conclusions and recommendations of the survey. If approved by the City Council, the new speed limits will become effective immediately.

Staff recommends approval of the City of La Habra 2023 Engineering and Traffic Survey prepared by RK Engineering Group, Inc. dated September 29, 2023, and authorize staff to change the speed limits on Walnut Street and Citrus Drive.

The proposed work to remove and replace the speed limit signs is estimated at approximately $1,000. Sufficient funds are available in the City's General Fund Street Maintenance budget to perform this work; therefore, no additional funds are requested at this time. 

Objective G - Improve and enhance traffic and pedestrian safety through regular traffic enforcement, commercial vehicle enforcement, parking enforcement, and DUI enforcement, as well as provide support to the La Habra Neighborhood Traffic Management Plan.