ORANGE : Barricade on Adams to Be Removed, Replaced With Speed ‘Humps’

A partial traffic barricade on Adams Avenue between Cambridge and Lincoln streets that was cheered by some neighbors and despised by others will be removed and replaced, most likely with speed “humps,” to control fast-moving cars on that stretch of road.

The City Council made the decision Tuesday after a public hearing that, for the second time, drew more than 100 people.

Despite pleas from supporters of the barrier, council members sided with engineers who said the barrier, which cuts off access to the eastbound side of the road, is dangerous because it prompts motorists to drive on the wrong side of the street to avoid it.

The proposed speed humps are shorter and wider than the speed bumps found in shopping center parking lots, according to traffic engineer Chuck Glass.

They are 3 inches high at the center and about 12 feet wide. Speed bumps, by contrast, are about 6 inches high and only two to three feet wide.

The city will spend $15,000 to install the humps, which will be spaced about 400 feet apart.

Council members said 65% of homeowners on the street must agree to the humps before they can be installed.

All 20 of the homes that will be opposite the five speed humps must also agree, they added.

Engineers at the hearing said the barrier did reduce the number of cars using Adams Avenue as a shortcut.

But they said it was ignored by many motorists, who would drive on the wrong side of the road to bypass the diverter.

“We just cannot (have) policemen sitting at the barrier 24 hours a day” to catch such drivers, traffic engineer Bernie Dennis said.