When traffic calming measures, like the concrete bump-outs along Capitol Drive, Commerce Street and Walnut Street, were installed during the warmer months, many neighbors wondered whether they'd be effective when they're covered in snow.
On Friday, after multiple snow events, TMJ4 News crews circled back to check in on those a few of neighborhoods.
Snow was cleared down to the pavement along Walnut and Commerce Streets, as well as along Capitol Drive.
One neighbor who lives along Commerce Street happens to also be a former city engineer. He told TMJ4's Ryan Jenkins that traffic calming measures are often designed with things like snow removal in mind.
"When you take the street and you do any changes there, there's planning before that happens," said former Milwaukee Department of Public Works Engineer Fredy Canales. "There's a lot of training going on there (and the plow drivers) do other stuff, not only plows, they do the garbage, they do other things. These are the drivers who also do the plowing."
Canales says their experience in the neighborhoods they work in helps them know the changes to the street design.
In addition to that background that some drivers have, there are also notes and maps given to drivers ahead of their shifts, and signs are posted to alert drivers to the traffic calming measure that may be buried.
In a study, posted by U.S. Federal Highway Administration and presented at the Annual Conference of the Transportation Association of Canada in 2011 found traffic calming measures to be equally effective in both summer and winter months. While reporting on this story, we learned that in 71% of cases, traffic calming installations did not experience any issues with snow removal and in 79% of cases, there was no deterioration due to snow removal.
In addition to those statistics Canales, who lives in a home that overlooks bump-outs along Commerce Street, said he says it appears the installations are still doing their job.
"Actually traffic has to slow down more because when it was dry people would go really fast," he said.
At the end of the day, Canales said these traffic calming measures are still effective in the snow and they're just something drivers will need to take some time to get used to.
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