Driving down Procter Street last week before the storm, the downtown thoroughfare felt almost normal.
Gone were the temporary stop signs, only their sandbags remaining.
In place of the signs were weeds, the aforementioned bags and, yes, traffic—moving smoothly and without apparent incident despite the signs’ absence. All this begs the question: Why have the signs at all?
If they exist to increase public safety, surely that need would be greater during a storm. But, then, if that were the case why would they be taken away just prior to one?
It’s obvious drivers can navigate Procter without the signs; the smaller streets crossing Procter all have stop signs as it is. But, if there is a traffic study out there showing a need for stop signs, why not invest in some permanent signs? Traffic lights seem pointless as there isn’t enough traffic to warrant them, but just about anything is better than the temporary stop signs perched upon thin metal arms in the middle of the street.
I’m forced to assume they exist because drivers were speeding down Procter, though with the police department less than a block away, one wonders how the traffic patrol would allow this to be so.
As it stands, the temporary signs lend to the feeling of decay and obsolescence in the area, as though the city can’t bother erecting a permanent sign because downtown is not worth the effort. They seem like the civic equivalent of leaving the Christmas lights up all year long except, even worse than being tacky, they’re apparently public hazards if a storm should come upon us.
The best solution would be some roundabouts. Though still foreign in most cities, roundabouts have been making—excuse the pun—inroads in many American cities. Traffic experts tell us they allow for a smoother flow of traffic (with a yield sign, no one need stop if there are not other cars in the area) and by forcing drivers to slow down and turn, it increases driver awareness and reduces accidents. According to data released by Washington State, they’re so good at controlling traffic that roundabouts reduce fatalities by 90 percent and they reduce overall collisions by 37 percent.
In addition, with some design effort, they can be turned into green, lush islands in the middle of a street. Heck, add some colored concrete and a fountain and pretty soon you’ve improved the whole street.
I’ve written in the past about a need for bike lanes downtown and if you combined the two projects, you’d get a downtown that is warm, inviting and worth the drive (or ride).
Of course, this effort would require some design and some extra spending, but it does not have to be done overnight. In the meantime, I hope the city will at least get rid of the temporary stop signs. Downtown needs private investors and business people, no doubt about it. However, there is still plenty the city can do to improve the area.
Jesse Wright is editor of the Port Arthur News. He can be reached at jesse.wright@panews.com