County supervisors approve Linea Del Cielo stop signs

Changes are coming for one uniquely challenging Rancho Santa Fe intersection.

On Feb. 27, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors approved a new all-way stop at the intersection of Linea Del Cielo and Rambla De Las Flores and Calzada Del Bosque.

There will be no structural changes to the intersection, just minor striping and signage to “provide safety enhancement measures for pedestrians, bicyclists and all other road users by assigning a full stop to all approaches at the intersections.”

Installation is expected to occur within 10 to 12 weeks.

About 7,000 cars a day enter the Linea Del Cielo intersection with hourly volumes of 500 cars and county traffic engineers determined the need for better assignment of right-of-way and traffic control. The recommendation for stop signs came from the county board’s Traffic Advisory Committee, which works to provide the citizens of the unincorporated areas of the county with a safe and efficient road system.

“Properly posted stop controls at intersections reduce the number and severity of collisions by assuring that reasonable drivers enter the intersection at a low speed and have more time to take heed of the traffic situation,” read the Traffic Advisory Committee’s recommendation to the board.

Last October, the county received unanimous support for the new stop signs from the Rancho Santa Fe Association board.

County traffic engineers ran a simulated model of traffic flow with the all-way stops and found that while there will be some delays, there will not be a substantial increase in queuing or delay in the peak hours.

Currently Rambla De Las Flores and Calzada Del Bosque approach the Linea Del Cielo thoroughfare not quite aligned and each have a stop sign. Visibility is poor on both side streets due to the curvature of the road.

The stop sign proposal was driven by member complaints to the Rancho Santa Fe Patrol. In March 2018, the Patrol forwarded the item to the county’s Traffic Advisory Committee for consideration.

The committee, which includes traffic specialists from the county’s Department of Public Works and representatives from Caltrans, San Diego Bicycle Coalition, California Highway Patrol (CHP) and San Diego Sheriff’s Department, took a comprehensive look, examining prevailing speeds, traffic volume and CHP collision reports by type, cause and time of occurrence.

There have been about 25 collisions at the intersections in a five-year period and the intersection averages about five documented accidents a year. Eighty-five percent of drivers approach the intersection going about 32 to 35 miles per hour while 15 percent are driving at excessive speeds.

Due to the curvature of the road there will be “stop ahead” signs and red flashing lights.

According to the county, two weeks before installation there will be signs notifying the public about the new traffic pattern and they will remain for the first weeks after installation.