Pat Moeller | City of Hamilton website
Pat Moeller | City of Hamilton website
The New London Road / S. Washington Blvd. / Elmwood Road intersection in Hamilton has been a safety concern for motorists for many years. As the New London neighborhood began to meet in the Fall of 2021, concerns were raised with the City about the intersection, leading to further evaluation.
The City contracted with TEC Engineering to conduct an intersection safety analysis from 2022-2023. The safety study found that there is inadequate sight distance at the intersection, delays occurring on S. Washington Blvd. and Elmwood Road, and that a solution is needed to reduce the number of angle (“T-bone”) crashes, which have increased in recent years.
On Tuesday, January 23, 2024, a meeting was held regarding a temporary solution to prevent angle crashes from happening at the intersection. Just two days later, there was another angle crash at the intersection. City staff and Council believe that we can no longer afford to wait until after the February 14th meeting of City Council to implement a temporary solution, which was the timeline originally discussed at the January 23rd meeting.
The meeting on January 23rd focused ONLY on the short-term solution to the angle crash problem, not a permanent solution which would be either a roundabout or permanent traffic signal. The City of Hamilton will make time to allow for further comment and conversation about the more permanent solution in coming months.
During the meeting, which had an overflow crowd, it was clear that a temporary traffic light was the preferred temporary solution to the other two options, being a.) an all-way stop OR b.) a restriction on left turns off of S. Washington and Elmwood.
In light of the most recent serious crash at the intersection, City staff will expedite the installation of this temporary signal to have it installed as soon as possible. For the first week after it is installed, the light will flash yellow along New London and red on S. Washington and Elmwood to alert motorists of the coming change. City staff will also install signage to deter additional thru-traffic to streets such as Maplewood and Oakwood, as was mentioned in the meeting.
City staff will monitor this change closely and welcome continuous feedback after it is implemented. We would like to encourage residents to attend the February 14th meeting of City Council (details below) to continue to share your thoughts and concerns.
Next City Council Meeting:
Wednesday, February 14, 2024 at 6:00 PM
345 High Street, 1st Floor
Hamilton, OH 45011
As always, you can share questions, comments, or concerns any time by emailing trafficengineering@hamilton-oh.gov.
Original source can be found here.
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