Granola Park

Get off your high horse! That's essentially what the Ritchie Citizen's Association has to say to the councilmembers and citizens who last week saddled up to oppose county-proposed rush hour traffic restrictions on Ritchie Avenue and in neighboring Sligo Park Hills.

At the March 15 council meeting association president Richard Payne acidly posed a question to critics, including councilmembers, who the previous week cited "modern" theories of keeping "the road grid open."

Councilmember Dan Robinson said he was "still stewing and fuming" over the county's traffic restriction plan for Sligo Park Hills and Ritchie Avenue. He accused the county of "doing a great disservice" to the city, of "miscounting" in it's study, and of following an "unfortunate community model."

Most of the city council is NOT happy with the county's plans to restrict rush-hour traffic on Ritchie Ave. and the adjacent Sligo Park Hills community.

Though Ritchie Ave. is in the city (Ward 4), and Sligo Park Hills is not, the streets in these areas are similar. They are narrow with no or minimal sidewalks. The residents perceive them as heavily used by cut-through commuter traffic. Each has a neighborhood association that petitioned the county to restrict that traffic.

At a joint Feb. 24th county/city hearing the neighborhood associations and residents turned out in force to support the traffic plan restrictions. The restrictions prevent turns onto residential streets from more heavily traveled roads at certain weekday times. As the county's plan says, "the intent is to channelize the non-local traffic onto the higher-classification roadway facilities, such as Piney Branch Road,and Philadelphia Avenue." Traffic on those roads would increase 18%, says the study.