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The Springfield News-Sun digs into important public safety issues, including recent stories on efforts to widen Interstate 70 and plans to build a roundabout at Bechtle Avenue.
Clark County commissioners voted unanimously on Wednesday to spend $40,000 to install flashing lights at busy intersections near three local high schools to improve their safety.
The lights will be placed at the intersections of Possum Road and Selma Pike, near Shawnee High School; South Tecumseh Road and Rebert Pike, near Greenon High School; and Old Columbus Road and Bowman Road, near Northeastern High School, Clark County Commissioner John Detrick said.
Improvements such as these are typically paid for using money from the the Clark County Engineer’s Office gas tax budget, Clark County Commissioner Rick Lohnes said.
But officials broke precedent on Wednesday and agreed to transfer money from the general fund to the engineer’s office to pay for the project after the engineer said he wasn’t prepared to pay for it.
“We’re not using the gas tax money like what should be done for these intersections, roads, chip seal, blacktop, paint and striping and all that type of stuff. But we need to do it. County commissioners will be the heroes here and we’re going to get this done and get these flashing lights up at these three high school intersections,” Lohnes said.
Clark County Engineer Johnathan Burr said his department, which has more than $1 million in unencumbered funds in the gas tax budget, cannot afford to pay for the project due to declining revenues and increased costs for supplies, construction and salt.
Many of the projects his office funds are paid for with matching grant money from the Ohio Public Works Commission, Burr said.
Detrick said he supports spending general fund money on student safety.
“If we can save lives for $40,000, it’s cheap,” Detrick said.
The intersections near the high schools are considered high speed with speed limits at 55 mph. Officials hope the flashing lights will slow drivers and alert distracted drivers, Burr said
Clark-Shawnee Local School District Superintendent Gregg Morris has asked the Clark County Engineer’s Office to put in a four-way stop at the intersection outside of his high school.
Morris said on Wednesday he’s concerned about crashes and student safety and still believes a four-way stop or traffic lights is the best solution.
“We’re still working and trying to get legislation in place to assist with this,” Morris said.
But he praised commissioners for their efforts and said he hoped the flashing lights will slow down drivers.
The solar-powered flashing lights — six red and six yellow lights — should be an added layer of crash prevention for the 40,000 students and drivers who live in the school districts affected by the new devices, Detrick has said.
Repeated traffic and safety studies conducted by both Burr and engineers from the Ohio Department of Transportation have shown the intersection doesn’t warrant a four-way stop, Burr said, and could have the “potential of doing more harm than good.”
However, Burr praised commissioners for funding the project.
“This is them helping out here. I didn’t have anything budgeted for this. (The intersections) aren’t going to qualify for any grants,” Burr said. “… I still have to buy salt this year. I still have paving I haven’t paid for this year.”
The speed on Possum Road is adequate for the volume of traffic that travels the roadway every day, according to ODOT and county engineer reports.
Crash data shows the intersection isn’t one of the top 50 dangerous crosses in the county, Burr said.
A four-way stop cannot be placed at the engineer’s discretion, he said, because he has to comply with state regulations.
The engineer’s office has made safety improvements to school zone areas prone to crashes over the past few decades, Burr said. It purchased land to make the right-of-ways wider and increase visibility. Engineers have also put up double stop signs, speed trackers and extra signage around the school zones, he added.
Kelly said although the speed limit is 55 mph at intersections near all three schools, motorists are driving 70 mph.
He also said the flashing lights will make the area safer where thousands of students attend the schools near the intersections.
Commissioner David Herier said he supported the project because it was “apparent it was a safety issue and it wasn’t going to be funded in any other manner so we decided it was time to take action.”
Morris said he has raised concerns about the Possum Road and Selma Pike intersection for nearly three years.
“It’s because we see near accidents there all the time. We see the speed of traffic coming through on Selma, some of them are semi-trucks … It’s just really scary,” Morris said.
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