Don't miss what's happening in Kingwood
People on Kingwood.com are the first to know.
Go to top of page
Close
 
Close
Back
* CONTEST TODAY: 24 Hours Only - Win a $25 Gift Card to Panera Bread!  Ends in 23 hrs Read more »

Kingwood Mobility Committee Meeting Notes - April 22nd, 2014

Kingwood Mobility Committee Meeting Notes - April 22nd, 2014

« Back
This discussion has been locked.
Message Menu
by: KingwoodDotCom Active Indicator LED Icon 18 Site Admin  OP 
~ 9 years ago   Apr 22, '14 8:57pm  
Kingwood Mobility Committee Meeting Notes - April 22nd, 2014:Here are my notes from the Kingwood Mobility Committee Meeting tonight (April 22nd, 2014). These notes are roughly in chronological order. None of the notes here are exact quotes.-----------------The Kingwood Mobility Committee Meeting was held at the Kingwood Community Center (the old library location), and began at 6:00pm.This meeting was attended by roughly 24 attendees, in addition to the
Committee Members.------------- Oddly, there weren't enough chairs for the public attending the meeting. There were many free chairs outside, but we were told we weren't allowed to bring them inside, so half of us stood.-- The head of the Committee mentioned that this was a Committee workshop and not a public meeting, so the public would not be addressed until the following meeting next month (May 13th).-- Two new Mobility Committee members were introduced, both long time residents of Kingwood (the number of non-residents in the Committee was brought up in a previous meeting as a controversial topic).Gunda Corp - Our Mobility Consultant:--The head of Gunda Corp, ( gundacorp.com/ ) the consultant who is gathering and analyzing traffic data for Kingwood, gave a long presentation of current findings. This meeting was about the data being gathered, and did not include recommendations or in depth analysis yet.-- Goals of the traffic study were to include, among others: improving mobility, maintaining the same or better quality of life (including pedestrian walkways and maintaining the natural environment), addressing funding issue, addressing pedestrian facilities, public transport and trolley options.-- The study would measure improvement by: less congestion, less traffic delays, improving safety, maintaining cost effectiveness, and reducing environmental impact.-- Data collected included, in part: traffic volumen data from City of Houston, turning movement counts (cars in turn lanes, turning left/right) including video data, signal timing data, crash data from HPD, and more.-- The also take in to account new commercial and residential developments, population growth projections, and citizen input.-- Citizen comments are all being emailed from Gunda Corp to members of the Committee already, and are being stored in a database for reference.-- IF YOU WANT TO GIVE YOUR INPUT: You can email the company doing the study at: kingwoodmobility@gundacorp.comData & Analysis So Far:-- Current demographics of the Kingwood area are projected to be around 66,000 people, and their data indicates this will grow to 74,000 people in 2018. There are around 2.6 people per household in Kingwood currently.Crash Data -- Not Good News for Kingwood:-- The presentation showed an in depth "Crash Data" map. Major roads receive a "Crash Rate Score" based on this data. The state-wide Texas average road Crash Score is 125. ==> Texas Average Crash Rate Score: 125Kingwood Crash Rate Scores: -- Mills Branch and Woodland Hills had the highest (worst) Crash Rate Scores at 650-690 points. Other roads included: West Lake Houston Parkway: 578, North Park: 454, Kingwood Drive: 250, and Hamblen: 200. -- This indicates there are safety problems with the Kingwood roads, as all of them are worse than the State average.Intersection Congestion Data:-- The presentation showed an in depth map of congestion at 50+ intersection points, and each point was rate from A to F (F being the worst, with A-B being good, C-D being acceptable, and E-F being unacceptable). About 25% of the intersections received an E-F (Unacceptable) rating at current traffic levels.-- The consultant mentioned 2 fatal crashes recently. One was on North Park and West Lake Houston Parkway, and one was on West Lake Houston Parkway and Magnolia Drive (across from the Kings Harbor commercial area). Several attendees mentioned an additional fatality on Woodlands Hills that was not mentioned.( * At this point, Councilman Dave Martin arrived late, jokingly saying it was due to the Traffic * )Road Pavement Data:-- The road (pavement) conditions were also rated. The worst portion of pavement was located toward the front of Kingwood Drive, and was rated very poorly, at 60 out of 100 points.-- The Pavement condition data was from 2010. Members mentioned changes in the roads since then. The City of Houston employs a specialized vehicle to
drive down roads and test pavement quality. -- The front
portion of Kingwood Drive was built in the 1970s, and the pavement is
thinner than the pavement required by today's standards and has taken a
beating. The consultant was hesitant to make any recommendations yet,
but said on brief review, that the front portion of Kingwood Drive, even
if not widened, should probably be replaced.Other Issues:-- There was a question from a Member about the train schedules, and how the trains affected traffic. The consultant said that the data was coming soon. He also mentioned that it is possible to implement a "Rail Warning System" to tell people ahead of time about train crossings, so they can avoid the railroads at that time, and that this was helpful in Sugarland. One member asked if we could coordinate with the train company about their schedule, the consultant joked that he could ask God about that, but that we probably do not have enough influence to impact train schedules.-- One member asked, if they have tracked how often the traffic signals go out. The consultant said they did not have this data yet.  Several attendees mentioned that this was an important piece of data.-- One member mentioned that West Lake Houston Parkway was going to be extended in the near future (18 months?) to connect to Ford Road. They consultant also mentioned that 494 was funded to be widened south of Kingwood Drive in the next two years or so.-- One member asked if there were ways to measure backups caused by not having turn lanes? The consultant replied that they can measure this -- they have a computer Modeling system to model traffic volume, turn lane lengths, and the effect on backups. He said turn lanes were "low hanging fruit" to fix traffic problems, and that they are looking at all low cost solutions. He also mentioned that sometimes this is not enough to fix the problem in a substantial way, or may only be a fix in the short term.-- The consultant emphasized that they are *NOT* making recommendations yet. Collecting the data will only be finished by the end of 2014, and at that time they can begin analyzing the data and making recommendations.-- If the roads are replaced or widened, the drainage system will also need to be brought up to current standards, and this would require City of Houston Public Works cooperation.-- The consultant mentioned that the number of cars per household was similar in Kingwood to most other suburbs (around 2.5 cars per household).-- It was mentioned that new developments would need to provide their own drainage infrastructure to be permitted by the City of Houston.-----------------------At this point, the presentation ended, and the group broke off into smaller private groups to discuss the findings, and look over the charts provided.Next Kingwood Mobility Meeting:The next Kingwood Mobility Meeting will be held at the Kingwood Community Center on May 13th at 6pm, and unlike today's meeting, it will be open to public comment.  This will be one of only two meetings that are open to public comment in 2014, regarding Kingwood area street mobility issues, including the potential Kingwood Drive expansion. I've been assured that the next meeting will be held in the large Community Center meeting room, so seating will not be an issue. 4951
* Reactions disabled on political threads.
What are your thoughts? Log in or sign up to comment
Replies:
Message Menu
terboggs Active Indicator LED Icon
~ 9 years ago   Apr 22, '14 9:04pm  
Good notes, I wish you had introduced yourself. Thank you . Terrence  4951
* Reactions disabled on political threads.
Message Menu
KingwoodDotCom Active Indicator LED Icon 18 Site Admin  OP 
~ 9 years ago   Apr 22, '14 9:06pm  
@terboggs -- Were you in the blue cap, I wasn't sure if that was you? I was in the bright blue shirt standing near the door, I'll introduce myself next time.I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought the tiny room and not allowing any additional free chairs to be brought in was weird... 4951
* Reactions disabled on political threads.
Message Menu
terboggs Active Indicator LED Icon
~ 9 years ago   Apr 22, '14 9:10pm  
I had a blue cap on, but a bright Blue shirt.  You missed the notes about the survey that will be taken and the format of the next meeting. Most people had left when they discussed that. But I took some notes about it. I'm thinking about waiting so people will know the format.  4951
* Reactions disabled on political threads.
This discussion has been locked.
« Back to Main Page
Views: 6
# Replies: 3

Your Junk Our Trunk




Holy Comforter Lutheran Church & School Logo Lampson Retirement Solutions Logo Kingwood Garden Center Logo Weight Loss Now - Kingwood  Logo Texas Auctioneers & Estate Sales Logo Suzanne (Susie) Compian  - Member of The Bunyan Team Logo MacFarlane & Associates, P.C. Logo Fox Family Pools Logo Aesthetic Dentistry Associates Logo Tachus Fiber Internet Logo Pet Ranch Inc. Logo Maid Zen Cleaning Service Logo Marshburn's Flooring America Logo Di Maria Mexican Cuisine Logo Granny's Tamales LLC Logo HTX Soccer Logo Zero Gravity Jump Zone Logo T & K Electric Logo
Sponsor an ad Sponsor an Ad »