In January 2026, the City of Carlsbad completed work on near-term street improvements to enhance safety and reduce traffic congestion near Kelly Elementary School:

• Creating a new pick-up/drop-off queue lane to improve access to the school and reduce traffic back-ups.
• Restriping the existing median on Kelly Drive in front of Kelly Elementary School to discourage left turns from the parking lot

The City Council approved these changes during its meeting on Dec. 9, 2025, and staff got to work quickly to complete construction during the school’s winter break.

Additionally, in June 2025, the City Council directed staff to complete several near-term improvements, which included: 

• Removing the existing yellow ceramic domes on Kelly Drive at the intersections with Hillside Drive and Park Drive
• Enhancing pedestrian crosswalks
• Repaving and restriping the intersections of the streets to the city's current standards
• Adding all way stops on Kelly Drive at the intersections with Park Drive and Hillside Drive 

These improvements were complete in summer 2025, while Kelly Elementary School was out of session. 

During its meeting on Dec. 9, 2025, the City Council directed staff to develop a Safe Routes to School plan to identify future street improvements near Kelly Elementary School.

• Safe Routes to School plans create opportunities for city staff to collaborate with students, parents, school officials and residents to develop a plan that reflects the needs of the surrounding community.
• Developing a Safe Routes to School plan takes about a year.
• In early 2026, the city will begin an assessment of current conditions and reach out to the community to identify potential improvements.
• Once the improvements have been identified, staff will present the final plan to the City Council for review and consideration.

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The City of Carlsbad is committed to improving mobility throughout the city so people can easily and safely get where they want to go through their choice of travel such as driving, biking or walking. 

The residential neighborhood around Kelly Elementary School is one of the locations where these types of improvements will be made. The project area includes Kelly Drive from El Camino Real to Park Drive and along Park Drive from Kelly Drive to Neblina Drive. The project area covers a variety of unique uses for resident homes, a school, park and trail.

In June 2025, the City Council re-evaluated previously proposed improvements for Kelly and Park drives, directing staff to replace the existing traffic circles along Kelly Drive with all-way stop signs and develop long-term options for street improvements that do not include roundabouts.

The city removed the traffic circles and installed all-way stop signs during the summer. Since then, the team has monitored traffic conditions and worked closely with the school administration to identify additional near-term improvements that will be completed during the school’s winter break.

• In early 2026, the city will begin an assessment of current conditions and reach out to the community to identify potential improvements.
• Developing a Safe Routes to School Plan takes about one year.
• Once the improvements have been identified, staff will present the final plan to the City Council for review and consideration.

Sign up to receive email updates on the project and to be notified when there are opportunities for input.

Dec. 9, 2025 | City Council
The City Council directed staff to proceed with two proposed near-term measures and develop a Safe Routes to School Plan for Kelly Elementary School, which will outline additional near-term and long-term improvements

Nov. 3, 2025 | Traffic Safety & Mobility Commission
The commission voted to recommend that the City Council approve the near-term improvements and direct staff to develop a Safe Routes to School Plan.

June 17, 2025 | City Council
The City Council directed staff to explore options that address resident concerns about safety without using roundabouts, and to advance near-term improvements which include removing the interim traffic circles and adding all-way stops on Kelly Drive at the intersections with Hillside Drive and Park Drive.

May 20, 2025 | City Council
The City Council asked staff to bring back options for the Kelly Drive and Park Drive Complete Street Improvements project for further consideration, following recent feedback on roundabouts. 

Aug. 22, 2023 | City Council
The City Council directed staff to return to the City Council to have a full discussion on information related to pending design. 

Dec. 5, 2022 | Traffic & Mobility Commission
Staff presented public input on the bike lane options along Kelly and Park and traffic control options for the intersection of Kelly and Hillside and staff's recommended designs. 

Aug. 2, 2021 | Traffic & Mobility Commission
Staff presented information and sought input on the Kelly Drive and Park Drive Complete Street Improvements project.

July 6, 2021 | Traffic & Mobility Commission
Staff presented and sought input on the Sustainable Mobility Plan Active Transportation Monitoring Program Data Collection Plan that includes Kelly Drive from El Camino to Hillside as one of the 28 locations studied.

Sept. 12, 2017 | City Council
The City Council approved a Professional Services Agreement for the preparation of technical studies and plans.