CarlsbadCarlsbad — Carlsbad’s City Council voted 3-2 this week against more studies of possible safety improvements for Tamarack Avenue, saying a $283,241 consultant’s study is unnecessary after the changes already made.
The city has restriped, painted green zones, widened bicycle lanes, narrowed vehicle lanes, and added speed humps and electronic signs on Tamarack. Pedestrian-activated lights were added at one crosswalk after the City Council declared a traffic safety emergency in August 2022. The east-west thoroughfare goes across Carlsbad from the beach to College Boulevard.
Two bicycle fatalities in less than two weeks prompted the emergency declaration. Since then, Carlsbad has invested millions of dollars in road work, safety programs, education efforts and increased enforcement.
Mayor Keith Blackburn said Tuesday that the consultant probably would recommend additional improvements costing $5 million to $10 million, which the city can’t afford. Recent financial updates show expenses are increasing faster than revenue, and the city is on track to see a budget deficit in fiscal 2028-29.
“I’m really wrestling with this,” Blackburn said, adding that he’s especially concerned about the possibility of further lane reductions, which some people oppose. The vast amount of Tamarack traffic, probably 99 percent or more, is people in automobiles.
Council Teresa Acosta and Melanie Burkholder agreed with him.
“While I prioritize safety … it does seem like a lot of work has been done already,” Acosta said.
Council Carolyn Luna and Priya Bhat-Patel ed hiring the consultant, San Diego engineering firm Chen Ryan Associates. They said the city should take a more comprehensive look at the Tamarack corridor.
“Some residents have not had the opportunity to weigh in,” Luna said.
Most of the work done so far has been on the western half of Tamarack. Most of the speed humps and the lighted pedestrian crossing were installed near the Valley Street intersection, which sees a lot of traffic from Valley Middle School and Magnolia Elementary School.
An overall plan for the corridor would be better than focusing on only a few problem areas, Luna said.
Bhat-Patel said she’s received many calls from constituents who want more work done on Tamarack.
“This is something we have been discussing for quite some time,” she said. “It is important for us to invest this money.”
Carlsbad approved a general plan in 2015 that states one of the city’s key priorities is reconfiguring streets so people can get around as easily and safely as possible.
The Tamarack-Carlsbad Boulevard intersection is one of several intersections where roundabouts will replace traffic lights in the next few years. Traffic circles, smaller than roundabouts, are coming for some downtown Barrio intersections.
Carlsbad Boulevard, like Tamarack Avenue, has been re-striped with wider bike lanes, green paint, signs, symbols and arrows to designate areas where bicycles, pedestrians and motor vehicles share spaces. Higher visibility, mid-block pedestrian crossings with flashing lights have been installed in places.
Additional improvements are planned citywide as outlined in the general plan to encourage safer behavior on roads shared by vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians and others.
Cities across San Diego County are looking at new ways for pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers to safely share the roads.
