Intersection will become more pedestrian-friendly in New Philadelphia
Traffic flows well, but the intersection at Bluebell Drive and West High Avenue is unsafe for pedestrians in its current state.
The Bluebell Drive and West High Avenue intersection in New Philadelphia will soon get an upgrade. Crosswalks and pedestrian signals will be added to make it safer for those staying at area hotels to cross to Denny’s, Hog Heaven, Burger King and other local businesses.
Crosswalks will be installed from El San Jose’s Mexican Restaurant to Denny’s and from Denny’s to Burger King. This will connect three corners and allow pedestrians to safely cross from one corner to the other.
Work is expected to begin early next year. New Philadelphia City Council recently passed the final resolution allowing the Ohio Department of Transportation to seek bids for the project.
The state is paying the entire $200,000 cost of the project. The city received the news ODOT would be funding the project early last year, and plans have been winding their way through the bureaucracy since then.
“That’s a state route,” New Philadelphia Mayor Joel Day said. “And they realized the danger for pedestrians.”
Many questions about the project cannot be answered yet such as time of day construction will take place and how it will affect traffic. Day expects more details will come as construction nears. Work is expected to take eight months or less.
In addition to crosswalks, ODOT will change the phasing of the signals at the intersection and restripe traffic lanes.
“We’re going to change that up,” ODOT planning engineer Scott Warner said. “We’ll be going to a more traditional traffic signal.”
The current set-up is a four-phase system with each direction taking a turn with green lights, but the plan is to have signals for both directions of West High Avenue to activate at the same time. There also will be dedicated turn lanes for both directions. There is no need for widening of the road, according to Warner. They have all the space they need for the project, and it will only require new lane designations.
“It will be a little bit of a change for the public,” ODOT traffic engineer Christopher Varcolla said.
Interrupt buttons also will be installed to activate the walk and don’t walk signals. These buttons will send a signal to the controller, indicating a pedestrian is at the crosswalk waiting to cross.
“It doesn’t automatically stop traffic,” Warner said.
Instead, it activates the walk signal when the traffic light cycle returns to the appropriate crosswalk and holds left-turn traffic while people cross.
“We give it enough time for a leisurely walk before we let the left-turn lane go,” Warner said.
Day said there is an effort to make the city more bike-friendly, but there are no specific features of the upgrade to make this intersection more bike-friendly. Day said he has ridden his bike through the intersection several times and pointed out, like in any busy intersection, it’s just important to pay attention.
The city applied for grants to install sidewalks in the area but was denied. They plan to reapply.
Work is continuing on a master plan for downtown revitalization and future of the city, but many of the current projects happening around town are not part of that.
The gateway to Kent State University at Tuscarawas, construction on Broadway and building of the Menard’s on Bluebell are all projects that have been in the works for some time.
“These projects have been planned for several years,” Day said. “This is another indication that New Philadelphia is growing as a city. That’s just one more thing that shows our city is becoming an attraction for businesses.”