2026 Safety Committee Priorities

I want to hit the ground running in 2026, so at Monday’s meeting we’ll be discussing our priorities for the coming year.

I’ve kept a running list of issues brought up by community members or that I’ve noticed as I’m out and about in the village. There are far too many items on this list to tackle at once, so I’m hoping we can narrow it down to the most impactful changes where we believe we can make some progress. Have a concern that’s not on this list? Get in touch or join us Monday night.

Table of Contents

Main Street Lane Changes

We’ll continue the conversation that started last year and ended with a traffic study and drawings prepared by the village engineer showing one lane of traffic in each direction between Orange and Washington Streets, with dedicated left-turn lanes at Orange (northbound), Bell, and Washington (southbound).

Updated Traffic Control Equipment

The village’s traffic and pedestrian signal equipment is near the end of its useful life and it’s time to replace it with current technology.

Village-wide 25 MPH Speed Limit

We have had many requests – especially from residents on East Washington Street – to enact a village-wide 25 MPH speed limit. North Street and Solon Road would also be affected.

Electric Bikes & Scooters

There’s been an increase of complaints about electric bikes (primarily ridden by kids) on the sidewalks. The police department has increased enforcement, and I’ve offered to put together some education materials in the hopes of getting them to ride more safely. No one really wants kids riding in the street, but we also don’t want them plowing into people walking on the sidewalk.

Right-Turn-On-Red

Permitted right turn on red is a relic of the 1970s energy crisis. According to village codified ordinances right turns on red are already prohibited at Philomethian and Bell, Philomethian and Washington, Bell and Main, Main and Washington, Franklin and Washington, and Orange and Main, but for reasons that are lost to time these are no longer signed or enforced.

Maple Street

I’d like to see the sidewalk completed at the corner of Maple Street & Solon Road (PDF) as part of Phase 2 of the Maple Street Project, and we’ve been approached by neighbors about improving the crosswalks on that very wide and sometimes fast street.

Cleveland Street Crosswalk at Low Street

I was contacted by a Riverhaus resident about the lack of a safe way to cross Cleveland Street from her home. Speeding is common and sight lines are bad for drivers as they descend from Bell Street (northbound) or come around the curved bridge (southbound).

Bell & Vincent Streets

Back in 2023 the village engineer drew up plans for a marked crosswalk and RRFBs on Bell Street, and improved pedestrian facilities on Vincent Street to make it easier to access the River Walk Trail (and get closer to making it a complete loop).

East Orange, North, and Mill Street Intersection

Councilman Rockey has requested that we revisit my proposal for a better intersection at East Orange, North, and Mill Streets.

Cleveland Street and Bell Street Intersection

Too many drivers lose their minds here. They ignore the stop sign. They follow the car in front of them through the intersections. People get mad. There’s a lot of honking.

Cleveland Street and East Washington Street Intersection

Very unlikely anything will happen soon, but I wanted to add it to the conversation anyway. This is the craziest intersection in the village, made worse by the fact that there’s nowhere to cross East Washington Street between Philomethian and Terri Kruse Drive (at the High School & Middle School campus). I’d like to see it addressed someday.