Did the 'Road Diet' Make Traffic Better or Worse?

Petaluma Boulevard South now has fewer lanes, but does it have more traffic?

The Petaluma City Council on Monday will discuss the impact from the city's "road diet," which reduced the road between Washington and D streets from two lanes in each direction to one lane each way. The work was finished in June.

A city staff report says motorists were seen blocking intersections at first, but they've since been causing fewer backups, which the report attributes to drivers becoming "more aware of the new configuration and accustomed to the road diet alignment."

Residents have complained that driving through the area now takes up to 15 minutes, but 25 timed runs by city staff produced a range of two-and-a-half minutes to six minutes to travel through the section.

City staff say it appears accident rates have decreased in the "road diet" area.

The full city staff report is available here.

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Petaluma City Council meeting
7 p.m. Monday
11 English St.

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