New stop signs coming to problem intersection

New pavement markings are planned as well, including stop lines near all three signs, and double yellow center lines.

Mentor’s relatively new Neighborhood Traffic Calming Program was put to the test in the French Hollow area recently.

The result is the addition of two stop signs to the Wheeler Court-Shandle Boulevard intersection, though the spot doesn’t meet the criteria for a traffic-calming measure, officials said.

The new signs are being installed for eastbound and westbound motorists, making it a three-way stop and consistent with Shandle and Hilltop Drive to the south — already a three-way stop. Currently, there is only a stop sign for northbound traffic at Wheeler.

“I drive that road myself frequently,” Assistant City Manager Tony Zampedro said. “Anecdotally, I can say that, as you approach that intersection, cars coming southbound on Shandle, because there’s no stop there … people tend to really cut that sharp on an easy angle so they can keep rolling.”

Residents in the neighborhood had requested speed bumps or humps. However, because of the short length of the street (less than 1,000 feet) and lack of curbs, it was ineligible, according to the traffic calming policy adopted last summer.

Councilman at large Scott J. Marn questioned whether the policy had been followed, after learning of the stop signs proposal in an email just prior to the June 20 meeting.

“We spent a number of work sessions discussing how we’re going to handle our traffic calming situations and that process, and I was under the assumption that part of that process was going to stop the automatic knee-jerk reaction to add stop signs, which, in my 18 years on council, is not a trafficcalming procedure.”

Zampedro agreed that the signs normally aren’t used to regulate speeds.

“In this case, though … making this consistent signage with the south end, you will require people to stop there and they will be more inclined to take that turn appropriately,” he said.

Ward 4 Councilman John Krueger, whose ward includes French Hollow, said the problem has been in discussion for a year.

The signs were recommended by the Engineering Department and the administration’s traffic working group after a review of the policy, City Manager Ken Filipiak said.

“The engineer pointed out that the inconsistency is a safety issue,” he said.

Marn suggested that, in future, there be a procedure for distinguishing between traffic-calming and consistency situations.

Council unanimously approved the stop signs.

“I expect that they will be installed in the short term,” Mentor Engineer Dave Swiger said.

New pavement markings are planned as well, including stop lines near all three signs, and double yellow center lines on Wheeler and the speed limit (25 mph) on Shandle’s roadway.