Oh Lordy what have we become. And then there is the Gulf of America. And I am sure Fort Liberty will soon be Fort Bragg again. So for those of us who have trouble with names, these realizations are a bit much for the brain.
1 Like
I just ignore the names altogether and use landmarks. “That intersection where the Costco is” or “the crazy light near the Rialto” usually seems to work pretty well!
5 Likes
Also Sir Walter Raleigh never set foot in Raleigh.
Everything is a LIE!!! 
3 Likes
Hold onto your hat: Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz never set foot in Charlotte either.
Saint Francis of Assisi loooved San Francisco though. He was always hanging out in mission district
3 Likes
I thought that you were going to say The Castro. 
1 Like
And that’s all well and good, but there’s now 6 points (circled). And it bothers me. Remove a point or change the name, Raleigh!
5 Likes
maybe some bollards to maintain name integrity?
The City gave the Five Points CAC a full presentation on the Five Points intersection options. I figured everyone here would be interested in seeing it.
The presentation can be found here: Dropbox
Notes from the meeting minutes that were emailed out are below:
Five Points Streetscape and Safety Study - Adil Chema and Dr. Zachary Bugg (please see the attached PowerPoint slides)
The two presenters shared:An acknowledgement of a delay in a public meeting.
An introduction of themselves.
A review of the timeline for the project
The PowerPoint slides have details about the timeline.
The last meeting about the study was in 2023. Three concepts were discussed at that meeting that received the most support from the previous meeting:Concept A: Low impact option - Signal phasing and geometrics
Concept G: Single lane roundabout (the peanut)
Concept I: Multilane roundabout
The PowerPoint slides contain comparisons of the 3 concepts.Also at the 2023 meeting, attendees expressed general concerns regarding improving crosswalks and speed control.
There will be a Public Touchpoint #3 (in-person) in Spring 2025.
The improvements to the intersection so far have been:
· Directional arrows on signals
· Flashing chevron signs in front of the Hayes Barton Baptist Church
· Speed feedback sign near The Rialto
· Longer flashing at crosswalks
· Green arrow left turn on Whitaker Mill
· Improved street lighting
There are PowerPoint slides with a map and a list of Near-Term Improvements that are funded and planned and their expected benefits.Comments and questions during the meeting:
There was a question about the elimination of the right turn lane from Fairview Road that turns south on to Glenwood and replacing it with parking and a curb extension.
Removing the right turn will improve the pedestrian experience and provides several more parking spaces for the businesses in that area.
There was comment asking the city stopping the use of curb extensions. Folks seem to not be able to make the turns near them. Signs seem to get knocked down often on them.
There was a question about when traffic counts were done, because there have been changes in traffic patterns in the last several years due to new businesses. The Rialto is now open as well as new businesses next to the Rialto. Weekend nights have changed a lot.
The traffic counts were done in May 2022.
There was a suggestion to do a traffic assessment now to get a better understanding of activity in the intersection as of now.
There was a question about extreme speeding.
Unless physical barriers are placed in the way, speeding will be mitigated.
Several of the proposed options will slow people with physical changes, but they are not yet funded.
There was a question about whether slowing people at the Five Points intersection may cause people to cut through the neighborhood roads. Will there be countermeasures for that?
The proposed options should not change capacity or congestion at the Five Points intersection that should cause people to seek out alternative routes.
Will anything be happening with parking on Glenwood near Lilly’s?
There are no plans for near-term changes to the parking in that area.
Here are comments from the chat:
· That Fairview Turn where curb extensions is already VERY tight
· Do not use curb extensions that increase turning hazards.
· Extreme Speeding East Bound is enhanced from St. Mary’s/Anderson Light “straight away” allowing drivers to get to very high speeds before they reach the businesses at NE side of Five Points. What is being done to SLOW Speeding that builds from St Mary’s/Anderson?
· Updated traffic study needed.
· Glenwood desperately needs speed enforcement to deal with intentional speeding between Wade and Peace.
· Certain streets have already had traffic studies, including Roanoke Park
· Could the map in the PowerPoint slides have more labels with some landmarks for clarity?
One big takeaway for me is the changes are currently unfunded. Who knows how long it would take the secure funding and then get started.
11 Likes
I’m sorry but those roundabout proposals are insanity. They would be confusing and dangerous for pedestrians and vehicles.
If the goal is to slow down cars there are better ways to do that. If the thought is the intersection is confusing not sure who thinks a roundabout would help that.
2 Likes
Personally, I would find a roundabout easier to navigate than the current intersection.
23 Likes
I’m glad someone else is talking about how poorly curb extensions seem to be done around here.
1 Like
a city with many phds and an engineering school cant figure out a roundabout?
4 Likes
Not without addressing all concerns from Mary and Steve in Hates Barton
5 Likes
If they can’t figure out the current setup which is not confusing then they can’t figure out a multi lane roundabout.
The thing I don’t like about these post-installed roundabouts is that the city doesn’t put in a large enough roundabout to make people slow down and turn around a circle, it’s just a round curb dropped into the middle of an existing intersection:
You don’t have to slow down at all to go through these things. The only streets at Five Points that looks like it is properly engaged by these roundabout plans is Glenn Ave and Whitaker Mill, people on Glenwood and Fairview are going to fly through.
3 Likes
I agree about several, but weirdly they are not consistent with the sizing. Either there’s a rationale about speed limit or traffic frequency or they’re just trying things out. It may not look bigger, but this one on Martin is enough to make you slow down.
5 Likes
Crosswalks are coming!
From an agenda item in the upcoming transportation and transit committee meeting:
With development activity in this area and an increase in pedestrians moving across Atlantic Avenue at this location, this intersection has gained much attention from the public and the Council. Notably concerns of pedestrian safety given the lack of infrastructure at this intersection has been raised.
City staff has evaluated potential infrastructure enhancements at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Whitaker Mill Road to improve pedestrian safety and accessibility. Proposed improvements include curb ramps to promote accessibility, high-visibility crosswalks, a pedestrian refuge island, and signal upgrades including leading pedestrian interval (LPI) & audible pedestrian signals (APS).
Staff is also coordinating with the developer/owner of the Raleigh Iron Works project, who also owns Dock 1053, to explore both short-term and long-term pedestrian safety solutions. These discussions include potential infrastructure enhancements to facilitate safer pedestrian crossings along Atlantic Avenue.
36 Likes
Wish they’d not do a slip lane there, but this is still infinitely better.
5 Likes
If this were funded tomorrow, we’re looking at 18 months, so realistically it’s going to take 2 years. That’s unfortunate.
2 Likes