Next year, pedestrians will get crossings and signals to make it easier to cross three busy Greenwood streets.
The crosswalks will have user-activated lights and will be added at Meridian Street and Virgil Drive, Howard and Fry roads and County Road 75E and Stop 18 Road.
Because of the high volume of traffic on the roads, the signals are needed to make the intersections safer for pedestrians and bicyclists to cross, city engineer Mark Richards said.
The plan initially called for two crosswalks to be built along Fry Road and Stop 18 Road with $50,000 from the city’s road budget. But the bids for the project were several thousand dollars more than expected, and another crosswalk location was proposed on Meridian Street.
The Greenwood Redevelopment Commission was asked to approve up to $35,000 to expand the project. The board unanimously approved the expense in December.
The work is expected to cost about $81,000 and will take place in the spring, Richards said.
While some crosswalks have lights that are on all the time, these new crosswalks are more effective because the light is only activated when a pedestrian or bicyclist is wanting to cross the road, Richards said.
Drivers approaching the crosswalks should stop to let pedestrians and bicyclists cross the street if the yellow flashing light is on, Richard said.
The city will also install signs with instructions on how to activate the light at each crossing, and telling pedestrians to wait until traffic is stopped or clear to cross, he said. Markings on the road will indicate where to cross the street, he said.
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Here is a look at where three new crosswalks with user-activated signals will be installed in Greenwood next year:
Meridian Street and Virgil Drive
Howard and Fry roads
Stop 18 Road and County Road 75E
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