Two-Way Traffic Yields No ‘Major’ Incidents
Kittanning Borough Police Chief Bruce Mathews said no major incidents have occurred at the new two-way intersection downtown since the new implementation last month.
by Jonathan Weaver
Saturday marks five weeks since Kittanning Borough motorists were able to legally drive in both directions along McKean Street downtown.
The traffic pattern change was made at the beginning of April as one of the final items as part of Phase 1 of the Downtown Kittanning Revitalization Project, and also included Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) officials implementing new traffic signals at both the McKean Street and Grant Avenue intersections along Market Street and new pedestrian signal equipment.
The pedestrian crossing pattern at these locations is now concurrently phased, Community Division Director Jennifer Bellas told Kittanning Borough Council members Monday night - meaning pedestrians can cross at the same time as vehicular traffic traveling in the same direction.
“If you push the ‘walk’ button, the vehicles traveling in the same direction that you are crossing have the green light as well – they can go (but) they are to yield to the pedestrian,” Bellas said. “But, I also warned the pedestrian that they are just to make sure and look.”
This new pedestrian phasing was implemented as a recommendation from the Kittanning Borough Transportation Study adopted by the Borough in 2013.
Concurrent pedestrian phasing provides longer uninterrupted periods of travel for both vehicles and pedestrians, and Bellas said the change will be a benefit during summer events.
Kittanning Police Chief Bruce Mathews also acknowledged the two-way traffic in his monthly report.
“We’re a little over a month now, and I’m happy to report that we’ve had no major incidents there,” Chief Mathews said.
West Penn Power crews are still planning to remove a few more lights near the North McKean Street intersection
The new McKean Street and Grant Avenue intersections along Market Street also now have emergency vehicle preemptions.
Local News | jweaver May 6, 2015
