Motorists turning left from Twin Peaks Road onto Espola Road are taking note of a recent lane adjustment that has eased traffic congestion during peak travel times.
“Huge appreciation to whomever designed and implemented the new merge at Twin Peaks and Espola,” a resident wrote in to the City Manager’s office. “Wonderful stress reducing improvement, thank you!”
“It’s a simple solution to the long-standing merging challenge,” a resident shared on Nextdoor.
City Engineer Tracy Beach said that it is common for staff to field traffic complaints about this intersection at the beginning of the school year, even more so now that start times for Twin Peaks Middle School and Poway High School are nearly identical.
Traffic is especially heavy between 8 and 8:30 a.m., but things typically calm down after a few weeks she said. The city had made adjustments to the traffic signal timing, but staff decided to take a fresh look at the problem when residents spoke at a City Council meeting in the fall.
“The line of cars would back up from the traffic signal at Del Poniente/High Valley and there wasn’t enough room on Espola Road to fit all the cars turning during the left turn green light from Twin Peaks,” Beach said after going out to the intersection a few mornings to observe. “Drivers were trying to find shortcuts to avoid the area, which added more problems.”
Widening Espola northbound from Twin Peak to Poway High School was not an option. The Transportation Master Element of the city’s General Plan specifically designates that stretch of road as a “2-lane special arterial” – and when the topic of widening Espola was brought up in 2013, residents made it known they were not in favor. City council then passed a resolution confirming that segment was never to be widened.
With limited options available, Development Services decided to make the most out of what they could change. They restriped Espola just north of Twin Peaks to make the two-lane merge section longer.
“This allows more cars through on northbound Espola,” said Beach. “It relieves the backup on Twin Peaks, as well as on Espola south of the intersection. We also adjusted the signal timing on Espola at Del Poniente/High Valley to allow more cars to flow through.”
“We appreciate the feedback that we receive and are continually evaluating traffic hot spots in our city,” said Development Services Director Julie Procopio. “There are traffic regulations we are bound to follow that guide what we can do. But we are always willing to evaluate a problem, implement the best possible solution, and monitor it to see if we’ve made a positive impact.”
For background on the resolution to keep Espola Road a two-lane road, view the Agenda Report for the Oct. 1, 2013 Poway City Council Meeting.