GUSTINE - The city’s Traffic Safety Committee will hold its first meeting of 2010 next Wednesday, as the citizen group continues its efforts to address traffic-related concerns raised from within its own ranks or brought forward by the public.

Police Sgt. Jim Hamera, who chairs the group, said about a half-dozen people brought concerns to the committee last year, and in most cases a solution to the problem was found.

“I think the committee has been effective,” Hamera said. “It gives the community a forum in which to voice their concerns about traffic safety issues. It is a way to try to reach out to the public and create a more comfortable setting in which they can raise concerns.”

Complaints addressed by the committee have run the gamut from speeding drivers to requests for loading zones.

One example of community concern was the complaints about parked vehicles limiting the visibility of eastbound motorists on Lucerne at West Avenue.  The committee recommended, and the City Council concurred, that a no-parking zone be established in the problem area.

Community complaints to the committee and directly to the police department have also allowed officers to focus traffic enforcement on specific areas.

“We have been successful in having targeted enforcement in r egard to community complaints. Our officers get a list of community concerns, and will try to emphasize enforcement in those areas,” Hamera said. “What’s helpful is when the public can provide us specific days and times that a problem is occurring. That information allows us to better target our patrol emphasis.”

Not all concerns have been remedied.

“Some of the complaints continue, such as the issue of trucks parking off the truck routes on the east side of town. We’re still getting the same number of complaints on that,” Hamera acknowledged.

Prompt notification is a key to enforcement, he added. “We encourage community members to call when there is a violation occurring, not after the fact,” Hamera emphasized.

The committee was also not able to accommodate one business owner’s request for a loading zone designation.

“Our recommendation was that loading zones not be added downtown,” Hamera said.

Community members are invited to attend the traffic safety committee meeting to share any concerns they may have. Each meeting also includes a roundtable discussion by the members, and a review of information presented by Hamera on traffic-related incidents within the city and complaints received by the police department.

The committee continues to address a number of issues, Hamera reported.

Among its goals are working with Caltrans in hopes of convincing the state agency to install a left turn lane from southbound Highway 33 onto Meredith Avenue.

The traffic committee convenes next Wednesday, Jan. 20, at 6 p.m. in the City Council chambers.

Community members with concerns to voice but who are unable to attend may contact Hamera at 854-3737, Ext. 47.