BLOOMINGTON – Traffic engineers in Bloomington hope a southwest-side intersection is safer with new stoplights being switched on Wednesday.
New traffic signals will be activated Wednesday at Ireland Grove Road and Streid Drive. Bloomington Public Works Director Jim Karch said several motorists complained of difficulty turning from Streid onto Ireland Grove because of its 45-mile-per-hour speed limit and a nearby curve.
Karch said projects like this can cost as much as $500,000, but since it was not in the budget, creativity was used to drastically reduce the cost. Instead of long poles, the signals are hung on less-costly heavy wires spanning the intersection. The signals use newer energy-efficient technologies such as LED lights and low-voltage controllers.
“This type of improvement actually allows us to do it using in-house staff for the most part, and also allows us to do the intersection improvement for about $70,000,” Karch said. “When we saw that, we were able to complete it within one year.”
Karch said hanging the signals on wires costs less and would be easier to modify, but they look different than many newer intersections.
“Typically, citizens are used to new traffic signals being on gray mast arms that are large at brand new intersection improvements,” Karch said. “The city is using some innovative technology to try to make some improvements at a much-needed intersection at a much lower cost, and also allow for us to possibly use solar-powered controllers in the future.”
Karch advised drivers on Streid to be careful even with a green light because Ireland Grove drivers may not know about the new signals.
Greg Halbleib can be reached at [email protected].
