SANTA ANA : City Outlines Plans to Update Traffic Policy

Residents may have to wait as long as three years to have neighborhood traffic plans revised under a proposal discussed by the City Council, community members and the traffic commission this week.

The council did not act on the plan presented by city staff at Monday’s meeting, but because council members did not request any changes, associate engineer Ruth M. Smith said she expects the proposal to go before the council for a vote in January.

The traffic plan, now in its third revision, is being changed, officials said, because a number of residents were unhappy with the way traffic grievances were handled.

One of the main complaints has been that residents are not being alerted ahead of time to changes such as new traffic diverters and right-turn lanes.

The new procedures would clarify the process for making such changes by outlining the neighborhood notification process.

Some council members expressed concern that three years is too long to wait for all changes to be completed.

But city staff members said that, in urgent situations, the council could bypass the procedure and take quick action.