After reading the letters in the Review from Fritz Feiten (March 4) and Norma Smith (March 18) concerning the recent installation of the “no right turn on red” sign at State Route 305/Manitou Beach Drive intersection, I felt compelled to provide a rebuttal to their position that the sign should be removed.

During the last part of 2009, some residents of the Rolling Bay area expressed their concerns to me about the unsafe conditions at the double intersection, particularly for drivers attempting to turn left onto Moran Road from Manitou Beach Drive.

Having lived in the Murden Cove area for over 30 years, I was somewhat familiar with the various traffic movements and the resulting conflicts at the location.

However, it wasn’t until after I made traffic counts during the morning and peak periods on March 11, 2010, that it became evident that some changes were warranted.

The easiest change to make, in my opinion, was to prohibit right turns on a red signal for northbound traffic on State Route 305. It would improve the traffic flow on the two local roads and make the turning movements safer.

Mr. Feiten stated in his letter that the city should make decisions about traffic matters based on rational engineering considerations rather than responding to narrow neighborhood interests.

He obviously didn’t know that the person who had convinced the Department of Transportation to install the sign was not a neighborhood complainer, but rather a retired highway engineer with 26 years of design and managerial experience.

Hopefully, Mr.  Feiten will change his position about this matter now that he knows that a professional engineer was involved in this process.

Meanwhile, I urge all of you folks to make that northbound turn off the highway to wait (a maximum of 70 seconds) for the signal light to turn green.

Please give the other drivers an opportunity to make their moves in a safe manner.

Vince Mattson

Bainbridge Island