MILWAUKEE — Dozens of concrete islands are popping up on Milwaukee streets to prevent people from passing on the right, but the Department of Public Works says the curb bump-outs have created another challenge.
Dozens of the metal poles that are supposed to warn of the elevated concrete have been knocked down over and over again at certain locations.
Out of all the noises inside Ernie Paynes’ auto shop, he says speeding cars along Fond du Lac Avenue are among the loudest.
“I see it all day long, 80 and 90 miles an hour zooming by,” he said.
The city put a remedy near Ernie’s business, but the concrete island is creating an unintended problem.
Paynes has seen the warning sign and pole that sit on top of the bump-out get hit multiple times since they were installed.
“It’s tearing the rims up, the tires up and the cars up,” he said. “It’s dangerous, especially a young lady with kids in the back.”
Kevin Muhs is the city engineer. He says the bump-out poles have been smashed more times than DPW anticipated.
"We’ve certainly seen locations where there’s a fairly high knockdown rate and we know we’ve replaced the sign 3, 4, 5 times,” he said.
Muhs couldn’t tell us how many times the metal poles have been knocked down at every location across the city, but he says 29 have been hit along Capitol Drive in the past two months.
“Do these poles make it more dangerous when someone hits them?” TMJ4 reporter Ben Jordan asked.
“There’s always a challenge whenever you’re putting anything in the right-of-way that something could become a projectile,” Muhs replied.
Muhs says what’s arguably more dangerous is when the signs are down, drivers have no warning of the elevated concrete ahead.
Additionally, there’s a cost factor of constantly replacing them.
“We estimate it’s about $150 each time we need to replace a knockdown and that’s for materials,” he said.
That’s why Muhs says the city is preparing to pivot. Soon, the metal poles will be replaced with smaller plastic ones, similar to the green and white bollards you’ve probably seen at various intersection corners across the city.
Muhs says the bollards usually bounce back up after they’re hit.
“We’re hoping they’re not removed from the islands quite as easily as these are,” he said.
“Is there a concern given that those are lower to the ground that people may not see them?” Jordan asked.
“It is a real challenge to balance those things,” Muhs said. “All of them are made of reflective material so it should catch your eye no matter what.”
Back at the auto shop, Ernie isn’t convinced smaller warning signs are the answer, especially when the bump-outs are covered in snow in the winter.
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