Students who cross Spring Street to get to school will soon be able to walker safer with the aid of flashing solar-powered lights.
The City Council voted Wednesday to amend an agreement with the Department of Transportation, in order to go forward with plans for purchasing and installing lights at two crosswalks on Spring Street – one at the corner of Glenwood Avenue and the other at the corner of a path that connects to Woods Road.
Originally, the Department of Transportation agreed to help the city pay for two raised crosswalks in order to make Spring Street safer for students walking to Canal School and the high school. However, there were concerns that the noise and vibration created from heavy truck traffic would disturb the neighbors.
According to City Engineer Eric Dudley, one crosswalk was put in place as a trial in the summer of 2005, and soon after, complaints came pouring in from the neighborhood. Dudley said he can attest to the disturbance caused by trucks traveling over the crosswalk, as he and the city planner at the time, Brooks More, spent a morning in one of the nearby houses.
In December 2006, the Council voted to remove the crosswalk, which cost the city $3,000 – the same amount it cost to install it. Because the crosswalks weren’t installed as planned, the city couldn’t use the money allotted by the Department of Transportation as part of its Safe Routes to School program.
Now, the Department of Transportation and the Council have agreed to use that money – $3,973 – to fund the installation of two lights. The DOT recommended the city look into the solar-powered lights, which City Administrator Jerre Bryant called “surprisingly affordable.”
The total cost of the two lights is projected to be $6,621, which means with the city will have to pay about $2,648.
The lights will be on a timer. Dudley said they will flash for about 45 minutes in the morning when students are going to school, and for about an hour in the afternoon when they are released. He said, by not having the lights flashing all the time, they will better grab the attention of drivers.
Though the area is not close enough to a school to be considered a school zone, Bryant said the number of complaints received about crossing Spring Street, the number of students who do cross the street there and the high volume of traffic all indicate that “clearly it’s a conflict point.”
Because money is coming from the state to help pay for the new lights, the city is required to put the project out to competitive bid. Dudley said as soon as that process is complete, the lights can be installed. According to Dudley, because the lights do not require wiring and are designed to be attached to existing signposts, they can be installed in winter weather conditions.
“I was very happy to see this on the agenda,” said Councilor Drew Gattine. “I’m hopeful this is going to fit the bill.”
Councilor John O’Hara was particularly excited about the lights being solar powered.
“We’re certainly headed in the right direction,” he said.
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