A series of street signs used to help pedestrians cross Grandview Parkway – a pilot project by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) that’s generated public backlash due to confusion and safety concerns – will be replaced with more visible, permanent overhead blinking signals this summer.

MDOT officials will appear before Traverse City commissioners Tuesday to discuss the new crosswalk upgrades (commissioners meet Tuesday instead of Monday due to Martin Luther King Jr. Day). After testing yellow “yield to pedestrian within crosswalk” street signs during the 2017 and 2018 seasons as part of a planned two-year pilot project, MDOT reviewed traffic and accident data and decided to replace the signs.

“They’re a standard treatment in other parts of the state and nation, but they’re new to this area on a state highway, so we wanted to try them,” says Richard Liptak, manager of MDOT’s Traverse City Transportation Service Center. “There was confusion by both the drivers and the pedestrians as to their responsibility (in responding to the signs). We did see some changes in behavior, both by vehicles and pedestrians…but there was an uptick in crashes that concerned us. It was a mixed bag.”

Numerous residents spoke out at Traverse City meetings and wrote to city officials complaining about the signs over the past two years – despite the fact the city does not have jurisdiction over Grandview Parkway, which is under MDOT control. Liptak says MDOT also received emails and calls from the public. He describes input as a “fifty-fifty” mix of support and opposition to the signs, though he acknowledges that opinions expressed through non-official MDOT channels – such as on social media – likely skewed more negative.

The signs were intended to draw more visibility to pedestrians crossing the busy four-lane highway separating downtown shopping districts and neighborhoods and Grand Traverse Bay. But drivers expressed confusion about when they were supposed to stop – was it only if a pedestrian was in the crosswalk, or if a pedestrian was waiting on the side of the road? – leading to uncertainty on the part of both drivers and pedestrians. Pedestrians also described numerous near-misses when one lane of traffic would stop to allow them to cross, but drivers in the second parallel lane – unable to see them – would continue on. Last July, a 36-year-old Traverse City cyclist was hospitalized after being struck by a car in one of the marked crosswalks.

Liptak says data collected by MDOT showed enough pedestrian traffic at the Elmwood Avenue and Hall Street intersections to justify upgrading those crosswalks with new HAWK signals, otherwise known as pedestrian hybrid beacons. The systems consist of overhead poles on either side of the road containing three traffic lights, which remain dark unless activated by a pedestrian. When activated, the signal begins to blink yellow, cautioning drivers to begin slowing down. The light then turns solid yellow, requiring drivers to stop unless it’s unsafe to do so, then turns solid red – a mandatory stop. The signal then turns a flashing red – warning drivers to stop and yield to pedestrians if any are still crossing – before going dark again. The timing of the signal is “a duration calculated on an average person walking across the road,” says Liptak. “It’s nothing drastic.” The signal is intended to provide adequate time for pedestrians to cross while not unnecessarily disrupting traffic flow.

The new signals are scheduled to be installed before Memorial Day weekend, in time for the 2019 summer tourist season. According to Liptak, the Oak Street intersection – another crosswalk location on Grandview Parkway – did not have enough pedestrian traffic to merit a HAWK signal. Instead, the experimental yield signs at that intersection will be replaced with diamond-shaped, fluorescent yellow, pedestrian crossing warning signs.

The signal upgrades could require some reworking of the Hall Street and Grandview Parkway intersection, according to both city and MDOT staff. The pedestrian crosswalk at Hall Street is located just west of the intersection; drivers on Hall Street waiting to turn left onto Grandview Parkway could potentially turn into the path of the crosswalk without realizing the flashing signals are activated, or else face confusion on when they’re allowed to turn. Intersection conflicts are further compounded by the location of two popular beach parking lots directly across the street on the north side of Grandview Parkway. Liptak says MDOT is considering “restricting some turning movements” – the directions in which drivers are permitted to turn – to eliminate conflict points at the intersection.

Liptak says the HAWK signals are intended to be a permanent installation on Grandview Parkway, not another pilot project. “We’re trying to create the safest situation for both the vehicular traffic and the pedestrians we can,” he says. While MDOT does not need city approval to make changes to the state-controlled highway, Liptak will still appear before city commissioners to give an overview of the project and seek support. “We try our best to partner and work with local agencies…so that it’s a win-win situation,” he says. City Planning Director Russ Soyring encouraged planning commissioners this week to attend Tuesday’s meeting and to ask city commissioners to support the project.

“There are only 13 (HAWK signals) in the state of Michigan,” Soyring said. “So we’re real fortunate. This is kind of innovative for the state of Michigan. I think it’s really great that MDOT is being much more progressive…I think it’s going to help get the pedestrians across our very, very busy highway to our waterfront."

Pictured: Example of a HAWK pedestrian crossing signal