Crosswalks on Wallace Road Finally Coming to Fruition

An ODOT announcement for the commencement of construction of new crosswalks on a zoomy state highway should be a very pleasant thing to note.

via Twitter

They say:

A project that adds a number of safety improvements and paves Wallace Road (OR 221) in West Salem will begin later this month.

The project area extends from Edgewater Street on the south to Michigan City Lane on the north. In addition to a series of safety improvements, a large portion of Wallace Road will be repaved. Over 35,000 motorists use the highway each day, combined with a large number of bicyclists and pedestrians.

The project includes:

• Repaving the roadway.
• Upgrading curb ramps to meet American with Disabilities (ADA) standards.
• Upgrading traffic signals with yellow reflective back plates to improve driver visibility.
• Crosswalks receiving countdown pedestrian signals.
• Installing pedestrian activated rapid flashing beacons and other improvements at 5 crosswalks: Narcissus Court, Lynda Lane, Orchard View Avenue, the Park and Ride north of Brush College Road and Vick Avenue.

During construction there will be no full road closures. Travelers can expect single lane closures with flaggers controlling traffic and delays. Construction is not planned during peak travel times and on weekends. Travelers can expect daytime and nighttime delays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. Night work on Sundays begin at 9 p.m.

The $9.9 million project is expected to be completed by October 31, 2022.

But we've been talking about the crosswalk project for nearly a decade, and as a formalized project for over six years. The cycle even just for crosswalks is so long.

The crosswalks way back in 2014

The crosswalks will be a real improvement, but if we want to make progress on our climate goals, to meet that 50% reduction by 2035, we will need to figure out how to shorten up the cycle.