1. The DOT data is at odds with the data presented later in the presentation to the Council that consultants’ traffic counts at major intersections in Town have increased by up to 25% over just the last two years and that travel time along major corridors has also increased by similar amounts during this time.
3. The data presented in the subject material has not been adequately vetted for use in making any decisions. There are major inconsistencies presented, e.g. average annual daily traffic (AADT) in Town has decreased by 4% from 2003 to 2017, per the dozen or so NCDOT data sensors, yet traffic at 7 of the major intersections in Town has increased at rates ranging from 7% to 25% with an average increase of 18%.
4. No one has checked the NCDOT data. Were any of the sensors “stuck” and reporting the same data day after day? Were any of the sensors inoperative or providing widely fluctuating data? Which days were data counts collected? How were know low traffic days when students are absent accounted for (summer vacation, winter holiday period)? How was traffic that has come to avoid the busiest intersections accounted for?
5. Data can never be taken at face value. It must be thoroughly examined before it becomes information suitable for decision making.
6. It was stated that community satisfaction with “Overall Management of Traffic Flow” was only 11% worse that the national average, and thus potentially inconsequential. Wrong use of math. The Community Satisfaction was actually 28% worse than the national average which is why it is the number one listed community dissatisfaction on the survey, and has remained number one since the biannual survey began 6 years ago.
7. Further evidence that traffic is worse, not less per the stated AADT, is the significant increase in time needed to traverse 4 major artery segments noted in the presentation. Increases in travel times were as high as 24% in just the period from 2016 to 2018!