Keeping Timnath Safe for All
Whether driving, biking, or walking through Timnath, safety is always a high priority. From traffic studies to infrastructure updates to educational campaigns, the Town is committed to keeping our streets, trails, and sidewalks safe for everyone.
River Pass Road and Saddle Horn Drive
After a truly tragic incident near the intersection of River Pass Road and Saddle Horn Drive, we made a commitment to the community to evaluate the safety conditions of the River Pass corridor in that area.
We are still awaiting conclusions from the Larimer County CRASH Team and the traffic engineering firm (Next Phase) we hired to conduct the study. However, Next Phase has provided an early action report that recommends lowering the speed limit on River Pass Road to 35 mph. While slower speeds may impact traffic flow, this is an important first step to improving safety while we wait for the CRASH report and completion of the safety review by Next Phase.
Bethke Elementary
More than 500 local kids attend Bethke Elementary School; that’s a lot of little ones trying to get to and from school. Earlier this year, the Town conducted a safety study with Next Phase Consulting and the Poudre School District to determine what we could do to make the area safer.
Bike Fort Collins Education
Bicycle safety and education, encouragement, equity—and advocacy have been the cornerstones of Bike Fort Collins for over 15 years. They are a great resource for bicycle safety information and education
What’s Next?
The 2024 Proposed Budget includes funding for a proactive program to establish Timnath-specific policies and practices for pedestrian crossing guidelines and intersection control community-wide and a preemptive review of safety concerns at select locations. These efforts would help to improve driver, bicycle, and pedestrian safety.
Did You Know?
Making Timnath safer isn’t as simple as adding stop signs to every corner. In fact, sometimes stop signs make a situation worse! Here’s the lowdown on which traffic calming investments are appropriate under specific circumstances.
Speed Limits
Generally, traffic laws that reflect the behavior of the majority of motorists are found to be successful, while laws that arbitrarily restrict the majority of motorists encourage violations, lack public support, and usually fail to bring about desirable changes in driving behavior. This is especially true for the establishment of speed limits.
Stop Signs
A stop sign is one of our most valuable and effective control devices when used at the right place and under the right conditions. It is intended to help drivers and pedestrians at an intersection decide who has the right of way.
One common misuse of stop signs is to arbitrarily interrupt through traffic, either by causing it to stop, or by causing such an inconvenience as to force the traffic to use other routes. Where stop signs are installed as “nuisances” or “speed breakers,” there is a high incidence of intentional violation, which can lead to safety issues and a false sense of security for pedestrians/bicyclists.
Speed Bumps
Speed bumps are becoming less and less common as a method for slowing traffic as there is a concern that speeds can increase in between the bumps as people try to make up for “lost time.”