Easing traffic in Capitola is no easy task but residents want it done

The City of Capitola is meeting Thursday night to talk efforts to reduce traffic in the Jewel Box neighborhood.

Some residents, meanwhile, are hoping to see the same efforts brought into other areas of town.

Speed tables, which are essentially speed bumps with a flatter top, have been placed along Jade Street and 42nd Avenue to help with traffic.

There’s support for this type of feature, but residents want to see a couple on Clares Street and possibly see some work done on Capitola Avenue, too.

The traffic congestion is another beat, entirely.

“As far as I can tell it’s people trying to avoid the freeway traffic,” says Capitola commuter Gabriel Wolff.

One resident who talked to KION says Portola Drive is where much of the traffic problems are. That street leads down to Cliff Drive and Stockton Avenue, which is a major artery into and out of the Capitola Village.

The area where Cliff and Portola transition is where a turn restriction is set for late afternoon, which some residents say is only making traffic worse.

As a commuter, Wolff think the city should do more to encourage the use of public transportation or bicycles.

Overall, I don’t know how much the city can do to make this road more open to that many vehicles.

City leaders will discuss their efforts to ease traffic congestion and speeding in the jewel box area during the next council meeting.