Same here. Absolutely crazy to me, and I feel like it’s getting worse.
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I think this is somewhat related to speed limits and traffic calming measures (perhaps a better long term option?)
As a driver, this example off Brentwood Rd is perhaps one of the worst ideas for traffic calming. It effectively pits traffic going in opposite directions against each other if they’re coming through this awkward squiggle at the same time. If you’re safe about it and you’re approaching this at the same time as an oncoming car, you just slow down enough to let them get past their squiggle before you start your squiggle. Otherwise, it’s really two cars driving right at each other and a bit too much trust of my taste.
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Or be a badass, and just drive straight through the signs and raised brick…
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I intentionally drove through this the other day (I was defending it and felt I needed to experience it). In my opinion, it does exactly what it’s meant to. It makes you feel unsafe driving faster than the speed limit. I’d prefer eventually shrinking the size of the road and adding some above-the-curb protected bike lanes, but this is a nice cheap way to force drivers to slow down and take their time. I believe most residents like it as well.
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The N&O ran an article in 2021 about enforcement of speeding in NC.
https://www.newsobserver.com/article250726244.html
In a nutshell, there are multiple factors, but the root cause is a lack of sufficient funding. One of the highlights from the article:
“North Carolina spent less per capita on its courts than any other state-funded system, according to data collected by the National Center for State Courts in 2012, the most recent available. As a result, the state’s courts here aren’t equipped to deal effectively with the multitude of speeding cases. So almost every speeding defendant who comes to court gets a deal. State Sen. Kevin Corbin, a Republican who represents seven western North Carolina counties, said he has requested money for two additional judges and prosecutors in his counties. “It’s a larger problem than just speeding tickets,” Corbin said. “The whole court system is just clogged. It takes months and months for cases to be heard. It’s not really the fault of the judges or the DAs. They’re just overwhelmed.”
Read more at: https://www.newsobserver.com/article250726244.html#storylink=cpy
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I kid you not, I just got back from running an errand at Triangle Town Center (I’d somehow never been - what a strange area that is), and saw two drivers pulled over for speeding on Capitol along the way. RPD must have heard our conversation.
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I’m kind of a big deal…
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I’ve been pulled over twice for speeding in Raleigh in the last 18 years and they were both on Capital where it feels natural to go faster but actually the speed limit is 35 mph.
I curious what to make of this poll published by LR. Its done by a fairly reputable firm and doesn’t look good for the incumbents. Last thing we need is a return to the counsel of no.
In a New Poll of Key Issues, Raleigh Voters Call for Change
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 21, 2022
A new poll of 665 likely Raleigh voters shows overwhelmingly that Oak City residents want change to address growing problems in key areas including: the corrupting influence of campaign donations, the loss of affordable housing, the decline of neighborhood quality of life and the stifling of residents’ voices in local government affairs.
Key Findings:
• 72% of respondents thought that “city government in Raleigh is too beholden to developers and the real estate development industry.”
• 74% agreed that Raleigh is failing its low-income and minority communities.
• Almost half of the poll respondents (49%) thought that out of nine key issues of Raleigh’s most pressing problems that “a lack of affordable housing for middle and low-income families” topped their list of concerns.
• Respondents also thought that Raleigh’s growth is “destroying neighborhoods and forcing large numbers of people to relocate outside of Raleigh” by a 53% to 28% measure with 19% not sure.
• And a massive majority, 69% of respondents, believed that the Mayor & Council’s disbandment of the Citizen Advisory Councils two years ago was a bad decision with only 13% considering it a good decision.
The poll reflects Raleigh residents’ concerns about the growing influence of powerful development interests at the expense of housing affordability, neighborhood preservation and local democratic processes.
In the coming weeks Livable Raleigh will focus on each of these findings by proposing positive, constructive changes to address Raleigh voters’ key concerns.
About Livable Raleigh: Livable Raleigh is an all-volunteer non-profit organization with the mission to educate, inform, and engage Raleigh residents about issues that impact the quality of life in Raleigh.
Media Contacts:
Susan Maruyama
Susanrmm97@gmail.com
310-995-7888
Stef Mendell
stefmendell@gmail.com
919-412-2635
Public Policy Polling surveyed 665 Raleigh voters from February 24-25, 2022. The margin of error is +/- 3.8%. 50% of interviews for the survey were conducted by telephone and 50% by text message. Any media inquiries about the poll methodology can be directed to Jim Williams of PPP at jim.williams@publicpolicypolling.com or at 919-985-5380.
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I’m curious to know what their methodology was for selecting voters. Also, frankly, most younger people don’t answer phone calls or texts from unknown numbers (I certainly don’t), so I kind of doubt this is accurate.
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I don’t trust anything coming out of Livable Raleigh. They clearly have an agenda. I’d love to see if an independent poll would have similar results If Livable Raleigh furnished the questions, they could have been worded in a way to encourage a certain result. Again, I don’t trust them.
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What part of Capital is 35?
The part just north of downtown to about Wade. The 35 zone used to be between Peace and the Dawson/McDowell split, but I think it’s farther north now. I was pulled over by Mulino nearly 10 years ago during a speed trap.
It is an independent poll done by PPP.
Yup…heavily skewed poll. No scientist or statistician would give i any merit
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That’d be a first for Livable Raleigh.
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Yes this is exactly it. And it was a speed trap. I was wrong about the second time I got pulled over - that time it was coming up Saunders into downtown. So basically I did the same thing coming from the north into DTR and coming up from the south into DTR. Now I crawl along even though everyone else flies by.
PPP is very reputable, so I don’t doubt that the poll is as good as you’re going to get for a city council election, which is notoriously very hard to poll.
But let’s look at what’s not in LR’s press release:
There are no numbers on whether voters approve or disapprove of Mayor Baldwin or the city council as a whole. There are also no numbers on whether voters are inclined to re-elect the incumbent council members or want to see change on the city council.
It’s hard to imagine that LR didn’t think to ask those questions. More likely, they did ask those questions and didn’t like the results they got, and that’s why those results weren’t included in the press release. (And this was most likely a push poll, where they asked a bunch of questions designed to make the city council look bad, and then afterwards asked people whether they approve of the council.)
Take the question about the CACs. I’m willing to believe that most voters said disbanding them was a bad idea, especially if LR described the CACs in a way consistent with their world view. But does anyone actually care that much about them? Is it going to change the way that people vote? My guess is that this isn’t an issue that’s going to move anyone’s vote. This is same trap that Stef and Co. ran into with the “Save RDU Forest” platform in 2019. Sure, everyone wants to save “RDU Forest” and not have a quarry built there. But in the end, nobody really cared all that much about it, and it wasn’t enough to move anyone’s votes. LR is about the call the exact same play, except this time with CACs, and it’s not likely to work any better for them this time around.
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FWIW Indy Week posted the full results of the survey here: RaleighSurveyResults.PPPLivableRaleigh | PDF | Poverty | Poverty & Homelessness
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Interesting. Looks like they asked five negatively-framed agree/disagree statements before mentioning city council. Seems intentional.
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