City and county officials are attempting to cooperate on local traffic concerns, but winter has thrown up a proverbial barricade.
Technicians from the Road Commission for Oakland County kept their promise to change the timing system for the pedestrian crossings at Main and Washington streets in downtown Clarkston.
The ‘fix? apparently caused other problems with Main Street traffic signals, however, so pedestrians hoping to cross M-15 are again asked to press the special signal buttons to get the ‘walk? signal.
‘It’s a little bit of a disappointment,? said Council Member Steven Wylie at the Jan. 24 city council meeting. ‘I don’t know exactly what happened.?
Wylie has been exchanging e-mail messages with officials from the RCOC, which installed the new signals according to timing orders from the Michigan Department of Transportation.
City officials have lobbied to return the M-15 pedestrian signals to the ‘automatic? mode to reduce confusion.
City Manager Art Pappas said he called the road commission after seeing the pedestrian signals revert back to the former mode of operation.
‘I got all excited because a couple mornings it was working the way it should be, then on the third day it wasn’t working anymore,? Pappas said.
Because the change had adverse effects on downtown traffic signals? timing, road commission officials said they cannot make the change permanent until spring arrives.
‘At least we know they can do it,? said Mayor Sharron Catallo.
Spring is also the verdict for a traffic study to be conducted by the Traffic Improvement Association of Oakland County for the intersection of Holcomb and Washington streets.
Some city officials want to revisit the issue of making that intersection a four-way stop, but a formal traffic study is required before the city council can consider such an order.
Pappas said TIA will conduct a study of both the number and the speed of vehicles in that area, but probably not until after Easter.