Council mulls bike, foot safety

City may move ahead on roundabout without funding in effort to improve traffic flow

Avon Lake City Council is to continue prioritizing improved safety, and will vote on a citywide multi-modal transportation study next month that will examine bike lanes among other safety improvements.

Ward 4 Councilman David Kos, chair of the public safety and health committee, said the study will also look at crosswalk safety and ways to improve safety for pedestrians. This would be the second part of a previous study conducted in early 2021.

“This is the second part of what council envisions that there will be a citywide study as well, too, with the expertise of the Mannik & Smith Group to conduct this study and let us know what we can do better, where improvements could be made, and also ways to see grants and other monies to help pay for these changes,” Kos noted.

Mannik & Smith previously conducted a safety study for the Lake Road corridor, officials explained.

Kos added the city is excited to discuss how the results of both studies could be utilized to improve the safety and well-being of residents.

The $21,000 contract with Mannik & Smith Group, Inc. of Shaker Heights will review and analyze the existing multimodal transportation system within Avon Lake, and provide recommendations to improve safety for bicyclists.

The contract budgets $19,000 for the general scope of the work and an additional $2,000 for public engagement.

Kos is asking council to bring the ordinance up for a vote on second reading set for Oct. 12.

If approved by council, the study will take about three to four months and will examine ways to improve rider safety through a review of existing conditions, roadway operations, crash history of pedestrian/ bicycle locations, possible contributing factors of crashes, and improvements for enhancing operational conditions and safety.

Mayor Greg Zilka said at the Sept. 20 collective committee meeting the bike lanes on Lake Road will be slightly widened.

Lake Road is set to be resurfaced in 2022 and the area will be prioritized in the recommendations.

Zilka also reported the city was unsuccessful in obtaining grant funding from the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency for the construction of a roundabout at Lake and Miller Roads. The roundabout was recommended by Pat Etchie of Mannik & Smith in April to improve safety in that area with a smoother flow of traffic.

The city will discuss moving ahead on the project without funding in order to make the necessary upgrades.