The Place Where Ludington Talks
Recent Issues of Safety Along the US 10/31 Corridor
As discussed in the February 19, 2014 meeting our county, our city, and two western townships participated in with their planning commissions had with the Land information Access Association (LIAA) the main concern among our planners seem to be issues concerning safety of the US 10/31 corridor between the city limits of Ludington up to at lest Brye Road (#18 here).
Recently noted in and out of the local news this March are some recent developments or observations about safety issues along that corridor. In typical fashion, I feel it is almost customary when dealing with three separate issues along the same lines, to categorize them as either good, bad or ugly if the three conveniently fall into those categories.
GOOD (?): New traffic signals:
Like Clint Eastwood's character in the spaghetti western, the verdict is out on whether this is going to make a difference as to whether it will make the area safer, but the MDOT is installing Left Turn Signals on Brye and Meijer Roads. One would think that the expenditure of around $100,000 to install new signals would be well-founded and based on traffic engineering principles founded in the Manual for Uniform Traffic Control Devices, but around this area, this Bible for roadway engineering is frequently overlooked leading to the placement of Unwarranted signals, signs, and other traffic control devices.
Because a stop signal (or sign) causes substantial inconvenience to motorists, it should be used only where warranted, adding special directional arrows usually creates more inconvenience to the majority of motorists, so the added safety should be measurable and material.
Installing a traffic signal at a low-volume intersection (like Brye and Meijer Roads may be) can significantly increase crashes and delays. Again, the increase in delay and stops then translates into higher fuel consumption, increased travel times, and higher point source pollution.
It is important to carefully consider whether a traffic signal is needed, or whether it is needed to be modified, before rushing to an implementation decision. The costs and benefits must be carefully evaluated, and a careful analysis and engineering study must be completed. Without such a study publicly available we can only wait and see whether this was a smart move by seeing whether crashes are diminished, and the added inconvenience is tolerable.
BAD: Lack of pedestrian pathways during snowy winters (like this one)
This likely goes unnoticed unless you try to walk out to someplace along the US 10/31 corridor east of the Ludington city limits. There is absolutely no way to do it without climbing up large banked hills of snow. There are a considerable amount of people within the city and beyond that have no motor vehicles, a few of those have to work or go to areas along the corridor. To do so, they need to cross high banks of snow shoved there by plowing; its the only way to get through. The pictures below were taken today, well after the snow hills have reached their peak last month.
This would be intolerable if the county's decision makers had to travel these routes, but it should be intolerable when we have the capability to correct it for those who work for low wages at those corridor businesses, and those who must travel there to get to the SOS office, Michigan Works, the Social Security Office, the James Street Clinic, etc. It's a pathetic tribute to the Planning Commission of PM Township and the County of Mason that these conditions remain unabated since the corridor's existence, while they shamelessly, forcefully push for others to improve their pedestrian access facilities where it isn't needed (see UGLY)
The business owners could help the situation out by coordinating pathways behind or near their business that could be throughways for pedestrian traffic, but they only generally have the courtesy to plow their driveway and parking lot for motorists and leave the extra mounds of snow for pedestrians using their so-called 'right-of-way' climbing hills of snow all winter made by their inconsideration.
UGLY: Sidewalks without a purpose (Applebee's sidewalk to nowhere)
In the COLDNews on Wednesday, March 5th, 2014, it was noted that the owners of Applebee's, who are rebuilding their restaurant that burned down this winter, was to install a thru-sidewalk in front of their franchise, and would be the first US 10/31 business to do so.
Evelyn Bergalia, a frequent visitor to County Planning Commission meetings, dubbed it the "sidewalk to nowhere", to reflect the fact that it would be basically useless as sidewalks go, barring any other developments.
“I look at it as a start,” Planning Commissioner Tom Hooper said.
“It’s the beginning of peer pressure,” Lundberg said, adding once one business along U.S. 10-31 adds a sidewalk it will begin people talking and asking for more businesses to do the same.
Is that sidewalk going to sprout into a network of pedestrian friendly conduits or be lonely for awhile? I have to vote for the latter, since if you travel east, once you get past Staples there really isn't much to walk to or from, and a bit of distance between them. Traveling west, you go past an auto parts store and a bank, cross the street to a hotel. But then you can't build further west because of the US 31 overpass.
And whereas you can justify that this may be a good deal for hotel patrons to walk over to Applebee's and Staple's on sidewalks, the fact is there already is a footpath to do that along little used service roads that would be safer than travelling on sidewalks and crosswalks right off the highway and crossing Brye and other driveway access points. This route would also not tend to be covered with huge piles of snow during the winter. The sidewalk envisioned will prove so useless, that other businesses along the corridor will be more likely to balk at the mention of doing it.
The idea of sidewalks or paths going along the US 10/31 corridor is an idea that is well-past due with all the people who would like to or must travel that way, but the need is essential on the other side of the US 31 overpass, going from Taco Bell back to the hospital. If the county cannot show its own leadership on the issue by building useful sidewalks or multi-use pathways off the highway in front of the fairgrounds and airport, businesses are not going to follow suit. If the airport can spend nearly a million to put in an extra runway, and the fairgrounds can use about the same amount to put in campgrounds and other improvements, they can spend a few thousand for the common good.
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