The Wapakoneta City Council’s Streets and Alleys Committee met Wednesday morning and put a proposed reconstruction of the state Route 198-state Route 501 intersection on hold.
Following a safety review of the intersection — ranked as the city’s most dangerous based on the number of crashes — engineers from Choice One Engineering of Sidney recommended an overhaul that would have closed off Cole Street by creating a cul-de-sac and made other changes.
During initial discussion of the project, the streets committee immediately requested a public meeting to get feedback from residents.
That public meeting was held Tuesday evening, which approximately 30 people attended. Most were against the changes.
Safety-Service Director Chad Scott is looking into having lane identifiers hung over the pavement to assist drivers as they move through the intersection. Current markings include signs on the right shoulder and pavement arrows, which get covered up as vehicles enter the lanes. Still, Scott said they may look into starting those markings further to the south to allow drivers time to get into the correct lane sooner.