City officials held a public meeting Tuesday to hear comments on proposed changes to the state Route 198-state Route 501 intersection.
Engineers from Choice One Engineering in Sidney conducted a safety review due to the number of crashes at the intersection. There were 12 crashes in the area since 2013. A minimum of 10 crashes is required before the state will provide grants for reconstruction of the intersection. Only a couple of the crashes involved personal injury.
Craig Eley, an engineer with Choice One, presented the results of the study and a possible solution.
Eley explained Choice One’s recommendation that the traffic light on Lincoln Drive be moved south of Stinebaugh to where 501 meets 198 and the stop bars on the south end of the intersection be moved north to Hamilton Street. Stinebaugh Street would be widened, the median eliminated and a stop sign would be placed where it meets Lincoln Drive. Cole Street would be closed and a cul-de-sac created to eliminate that intersection.
The majority of residents present said neither idea would work, stating that drivers would have difficulty getting out of Stinebaugh without a light there, and that closing off Cole would greatly increase traffic on other streets and just move the problem.
The council’s Streets and Alleys Committee is scheduled to meet Wednesday morning to discuss the community’s feedback, with the hope of being able to make a recommendation to the full council soon.
See Wednesday's paper for the full story.