You Ask: Do Police Enforce Speeding on Buchanan?

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Recently, we received a question from a reader who expressed concern about traffic enforcement on Buchanan Street. shared some of his thoughts with us about how his department handles traffic enforcement on this busy thoroughfare.

Here's the original query: "If you enter Buchanan to get on the freeway, from say Cerrito Street, and attempt to head west, you are often confronted by speeders doing nearly double the limit, which is 25 mph. If you try to drive the limit, you are often cut off or ranted at by every sort of driver on the road. Sure they place those silly signs that tell people how fast they are traveling, but, as experience has taught us, they serve no purpose. Sure, the police are undermanned and we all know that story.... This little strip of road leads to many accidents and it’s only a matter of time before there's a death. Why is it being so ignored and what can we do about this?"

Buchanan/Marin is one of Albany's three "major arterials," according to the city's 2000 Traffic Management Plan, along with Solano and San Pablo avenues. Studies conducted during the plan's development found that speeding was an issue on most of the Albany streets that were analyzed, including Buchanan and Marin, with the vast majority of drivers traveling on them at more than six miles over the posted speed limit. 

According to the plan: "Wide roadways and long blocks with minimal traffic control on many north-south streets are contributing factors that make speeding more attractive for drivers. These conditions ensure relatively unobstructed, lengthy roadway segments where automobiles can pick up speed."

As of the 2000 study, more than 10,000 vehicles traversed Buchanan each day.

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THE CHIEF RESPONDS 

McQuiston explained that the has  in addition to regular patrol duties. 

It isn't uncommon for officers to find drivers exceeding 40 mph. 

"We do work traffic actively on Buchanan Street. We wrote a speeding ticket out there (recently)," he said last week. "We are out there working and writing tickets."

McQuiston said the traffic officer tries to spend time on Buchanan during each of his shifts, weather and other police calls allowing.

"And he writes tickets. And other officers write tickets. We stop a lot of cars," he said. "Buchanan has always been a street with speed issues."

That's partially because it's a wide, relatively flat road heading to or coming from the freeway, he added.

McQuiston said last year's reconfiguration of the helped slow traffic to some extent. And more changes are planned. 

"Down the road in the not too distant future, there will be another lighted intersection, at Pierce Street," he said. That intersection will include a crossing for cyclists and pedestrians at Pierce, from the on the south side to the pedestrian overcrossing on the north side. "Hopefully that will mitigate some of that speeding."

The also has applied for a $28,000 grant from the state Office of Traffic Safety to help crack down on aggressive driving and speeding, said McQuiston.

OTHER AVENUES FOR IMPROVEMENT

Citizens hoping for a traffic study can contact the city's Transportation Division to see if a speed study might be in order. Details are here.

They can also get in touch with the about concerns. (Email cityhall@albanyca.org with a note in the subject line about the reason for your message, and who you're trying to reach.)

Learn more about Albany's efforts to improve transportation throughout the city with its Active Transportation Plan. The public comment period on the plan ended in March, but residents can direct questions or feedback to Aleida Andrino-Chavez, the city's transportation planner, at achavez@albanyca.org.

If there's something in this article you think , or if something else is amiss, call editor Emilie Raguso at 510-459-8325 or email her at albany@patch.com.

CORRECTION: Based on an additional email from the police chief following the publication of this story, he made it clear that it isn't uncommon for officers to find drivers exceeding 40 mph on Buchanan. His original statement was not reflected accurately in this story and has been corrected. McQuiston also said the traffic officer tries to spend time on Buchanan during each of his shifts, weather and other police calls allowing.