GULF SHORES — In a city with a 2023 U.S. Census population estimate of 16,850, residents and visitors combined to put 30,000 vehicles on Highway 59 and Beach Boulevard a day in 2024.
As …
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GULF SHORES — In a city with a 2023 U.S. Census population estimate of 16,850, residents and visitors combined to put 30,000 vehicles on Highway 59 and Beach Boulevard a day in 2024.
As expected, peak traffic days included spring break (March 27-29), Memorial Day (May 24-26) and the Fourth of July (July 3-July 7). Another time that had a high volume of traffic was April 4-5, when there were “lots of events in town” and “nice weather for those days," according to Jenny Wolfschlag, city engineer for Gulf Shores.
Wolfschlag presented a traffic report at the Nov. 25 city council meeting while also providing information on improvements that can be made in specific areas and intersections throughout the city.
West Beach Boulevard saw the highest percentage of cars making green lights in 2024 with an 82.7% rate during Memorial Day weekend. The highest levels of pedestrian crossings were recorded on Hwy. 59 south of Original Oyster House, with the highest number of crossings at 2,323 during the Fourth of July.
For comparing the busier periods to typical conditions, a baseline volume was gathered from Aug. 12 to Sept. 12.
Mayor Robert Craft asked about getting a “blinking, yellow” yielding turn signal in the main intersections of the city during the meeting, which also included time for the public to ask questions.
Wolfschlag said most of the intersections where this would be beneficial do not have a clean field of vision for oncoming traffic, and there would be a potential risk of head-on collisions if they received those turn signals in the conditions they are currently in.
“That’s one thing we’d really like to fix, but it’s not really an easy fix because it involves a lot of asphalt and utility work,” Wolfschlag said.
“I don’t personally have an appetite to start another Hwy. 59 construction project,” Craft said with a laugh, “considering how that’s been.”
Wolfschlag said the different aspects that go into evaluating the effectiveness of the traffic systems include arrivals on green (AoG), split failures and transition duration.
AoG is the percentage of vehicles that do not have to stop at the light (when they arrive, the light is green). According to a study by Purdue that Wolfschlag cited, 60-80% is a good rate for AoG. Gulf Shores’ goal was 70%. Split failures are the percentage of cars that cannot get through the light in one go (when they sit at the light for two red lights). Gulf Shores’ goal for this was under 25%.
Transition duration is the time that a signal spends out of coordination with the routine, which often happens when a pedestrian pushes the walking signal button.
“We don’t want to see a lot of transition durations, if possible,” Wolfschlag said, “but we do want to make sure that we are serving our vehicles and pedestrians.”
The traffic signals along Hwy. 59 and Beach Boulevard are separated into five “corridors” or districts. They are:
- Hwy. 59 North is from County Road 8 to the Intercoastal Waterway (the light at the W.C. Holmes Bridge);
Wolfschlag said there are six traffic signals on Beach Boulevard and 15 on Hwy. 59 for a total of 21 in city limits.
She also explained that traffic signals on Hwy. 59 and Beach Boulevard are all adaptive traffic control systems, meaning they adjust in real-time using data gathered from sensors and cameras to optimize traffic flow.
The results of the five corridors’ traffic reports are provided below:
This corridor exceeded Gulf Shores’ target of AoG at 70% with a 71.5% AoG during the baseline period. The highest AoG rate at a 75.6% during the Fourth of July period. There were low pedestrian volumes in this area (the call button was clicked 0-2 times a day), and split failures were present at several intersections with the 30% rate just 5% higher than the city’s goal of 25%.
There was “excellent AoG” reported in this corridor with the highest being 82.6% during spring break and the lowest percentage being 72.2% on Memorial Day. There was increased pedestrian volume compared to Hwy. 59 North, as the number of times the call button was clicked was in the hundreds for this area. Wolfschlag mentioned how this area is under construction, so some of the data “might be a little skewed” and will need to be re-evaluated after construction has finished.
The average AoG in this corridor was lower than the goal with the percentage dropping into the 60% range, but with the baseline AoG at 73.5% this district remained “acceptable” in AoG. The pedestrian volume skyrockets in this area with call button click numbers in the thousands. The highest pedestrian period was the Fourth of July with 2,323 and the baseline amount being 555. Wolfschlag said this concentration of pedestrian traffic is likely contributing to the lower AoG percentage, and an “easy fix in-house” on pedestrian transitions will be looked at to avoid throwing the signal system “so far out of whack.”
This corridor had a “good AoG” percentage with the highest being 76.4% on April 4-5 and the lowest being during Fourth of July at 66.9%. This location also saw high pedestrian volumes with the highest being on the Fourth of July at 1,435 call button clicks and the lowest during the baseline month with clicks being as low as 347. Wolfschlag said this area is going to implement similar modifications to the pedestrian walk time to decrease the amount of call button clicks and likely improve the AoG.
"Excellent AoG" was reported in this corridor, with the lowest being 78.4% on Memorial Day and the highest at 82.7% during the baseline period. This roadway saw similar pedestrian volumes to East Beach Boulevard but with the highest number of call button clicks on Memorial Day with 1,340 and the lowest being 356 during the baseline period. Pedestrian modifications similar to those that are projected for Hwy. 59 South and East Beach Boulevard will be implemented to West Beach Boulevard, Wolfschlag said.
Wolfschlag reviewed some of the improvements that will be made to individual signals and made recommendations for “long-term improvements” that will involve some roadway construction and lane movements.
She also went over the plan for 2025, which involves improvements such as upgrading detection at three intersections, geometric evaluations and improvements at various intersections, fiber optic tie-ins, continued coordination with the Alabama Department of Transportation and continued adjustment to signal timing and pedestrian transition settings.
