Sometimes, when driving along a rural road, the only indication that you’re entering a town might be a small speed limit sign that is easily missed. The lane widths haven’t changed and the road looks the same. You may not slow down until you have already passed half a dozen houses and are nearing the center of town, and some drivers may not slow down much at all. These high speeds are dangerous for those in town, who may be out walking their dog or crossing the street to get their mail. One underused tool to alert drivers to the change in nature of the road is gateway treatments.
What Gateways Are
Gateway treatments, which are common in Europe and the UK, employ a combination of features that alert drivers to the transition from a rural area to a village area where pedestrians and bicyclists may be present.
Gateways define the boundary of a village center, calm traffic, and present an opportunity to add character to the roadway, and promote the history and personality of the local community. Example gateway features include raised medians, lateral shifts, attractive signage, lighting, fencing, plantings, and artwork, and work best when a combination of features are included. Gateways typically do not use vertical treatments, like speed bumps or speed tables, because main entrances to a town are also used by emergency responders. Large trucks can generate a considerable amount of noise pollution and vibrations when travelling over speed bumps. Depending on the chosen features, cost and maintenance of the gateways can vary considerably.
Recent Gateways in New England
In 2022, Hoyle Tanner had the privilege to work on a Streetscape Scoping Study in the Village of Moscow outside of Stowe, Vermont. Village residents were concerned about the increase in volume and traffic speed through their small village. As part of the proposed streetscape measures, gateway treatments were recommended on the two main approaches into the village. Three different gateway alternatives were developed, each with various gateway features and medians of different widths, lengths, and placement. The median alternatives with the greatest lateral shift would have the most impact on speed reduction. The medians would be combined with attractive signage, lighting, fencing, plantings and artwork, depending on the alternative. The community could celebrate their village’s history through artwork and the materials chosen as part of the gateway.
Gateways are an effective traffic calming tool as they emphasize the transition from a rural area to a more built-up area, which may include the presence of pedestrians and bicyclists as well as vehicles entering the roadway. Gateways with lateral shifts provide a physical reinforcement to the transition since vehicles need to negotiate around a median. Gateways without medians are more cost effective and can also reduce speeds when a combination of visual features are provided.
We can Help
Our traffic engineers employ planning, geometric design, and traffic operations of the roadway and its relationship with abutting land, stakeholders, and various other transportation modes to provide safe pedestrian and vehicular circulation. Hoyle Tanner has provided traffic engineering services for hundreds of projects and, therefore, understands the needs of our clients. If you have any questions or have a traffic concern in your community, please reach out to me!
