MILWAUKEE — About a month after new traffic calming measures were installed along a portion of Brady Street, a letter exclusively obtained by TMJ4 News, shows there are calls for that work to be undone.
"I've seen some improvements so far," said Jonathan Naimon who lives in the area. He says the redesign to the street, intended to slow traffic, appears to be working for the most part. "There seems to be more stopping as you get close to those pedestrian walks so, I haven't seen quite as much reckless driving around here lately."
The street re-design seems to be a welcomed change by many in the area. Brady Street is one that is no stranger to hit-and-run crashes involving pedestrians.
The re-design was a collaboration between the Brady Street Business Improvement District (BID) and Milwaukee's Department of Public Works (DPW). It created a slight curve or "zig-zag" in the road that forces drivers to slow down if they want to stay in the lanes.
Large planters were also purchased to help slow traffic, but they were never installed.
The letter from the BID to Milwaukee city leaders asks the DPW to restore traffic lanes to how they were and to bring back parking and loading zones that were eliminated as part of the plan.
The district is also asking to not have the planters installed. Instead, they'd like to see additional stop signs installed in the area.
Letter_BradyStBID Board of DIrectors by TMJ4 News on Scribd
"Cars are now redirected too close to the curb, people still speed, it's not really slowing them down. And then when we have delivery drivers and buses, it's making it harder for people to get through the intersection and that's creating some safety issues on top of that," said Leroy Buth, chairman of the Brady Street BID.
The letter asks the city to consider "less severe" methods to calm traffic.
"We used to have stop-and-go lights here at one time. That was kind of our first request. That was more of a cost issue with them in that regard so the other solution would be bringing up stop signs instead and then bringing back the parking and loading zones," said Buth.
TMJ4's Ryan Jenkins reached out to Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson's office, the Department of Public Works and to Alderman Jonathan Brostoff, who represents the neighborhood. None were available for an on-camera interview, but each acknowledged they were aware of the letter, open to further discussions, and said the safety of pedestrians remains a top priority.
Buth says safety is a top priority for the bid as well.
"We are partners with the city, this particular thing isn't working at the moment so we want to work with them and come up with another solutions," said Buth.
For more reporting on the work to calm traffic on Brady Street, click HERE.
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