Ellis Road

Speed Study

March 2023

Initial Complaint:

Multiple residents reported that vehicles use Ellis Road as a “cut-through” street and that vehicles travel at excessive speed.

Description of Area:

Ellis Road is a 2,121-foot long local roadway that is restricted to 25 MPH.  The roadway is approximately 30-feet wide with residential houses lining both sides of the street.  The 200-block of Ellis Road, which is the studied portion of the roadway, does not have a sidewalk present on the street.  Traffic is regulated by stop signs at the roadway’s intersections at Moreland Road, Sheldon Road, Bartram Road, Terrace Road, and Easton Road.  EllisRoad and its parallel residential streets (Dallas Road, Gilpin Road, etc.) connect Easton Road (State Route 611)and Moreland Road (State Route 63).

Data Gathering Method:

Speed/volume counters were placed in front of 232 EllisRoad for a 7-day period.  Crash data was gathered and evaluated for a 5-year period between 3/21/2018 and 3/20/2023.

Hazardous Factors:

Evaluating the speed of vehicles, the volume of traffic, and the total number of crashes assists in determining the level of response necessary to address the public safety concern.

The speed of vehicles on Ellis Road indicated that 0.02% of vehicles met the threshold for enforcement.  The 85thpercentile speed for vehicles on Ellis Road is 24.63 MPH.

During the study period, 1,453 vehicles traveled on EllisRoad.  There are no sidewalks along the street.

Analysis:

At this time, speeding is not an issue on Ellis Road.  The average speed is 19.29 MPH.  Only two vehicles broke the threshold for speed enforcement.  Looking at the last study conducted on Dallas Road, the speeds on Ellis Road is greater.  The 85th percentile on Ellis is 24.63 MPH whereas the 85th percentile on Dallas was 20.34 MPH.  Dallas Road has less stop signs controlling its intersections with the neighborhood’s minor roadways.  When motorists are forced to slow down for an improperly posted stop sign, studies show that they tend to speed up during the mid-block acceleration.  There have been five crashes on Ellis Road between Moreland Road and Easton Road in the last five years.  Careless driving is the factor in three crashes (struck dog, operator fell asleep, and likely speed).  There was a DUI and the other was stop sign violation.

Response:

No enhanced patrols are recommended for speed enforcement on this section of Ellis Road.  Periodic stop sign enforcement will continue to be conducted on all neighborhood streets in the area.

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Sgt. P. Cordura