SPEEDWAY — Ronald Haynes knows all too well the safety concerns for people walking along Crawfordsville Road in Speedway.
“It’s very dangerous,” Haynes said. “There’s cars going back and forth, and they’re not watching people cross the street and things like that.”
He’s right. WRTV cameras were rolling as people played what looked like a game of Frogger trying to cross the road.
“We need sidewalks here,” Haynes said.
The lack of sidewalks is just one of the reasons the town of Speedway says they’re set to start construction.
As part of the Crawfordsville Road Pedestrian Improvement Project, they’ll add new sidewalks, upgrade pedestrian crossings and add traffic signals.
“I’m glad they’re putting sidewalks out here. It will help the people get back and forth,” Haynes said.
They are also planning on adding a new Hawk Safety Signal, similar to the one on Cunningham Road and 18th Street.
The goal with those types of signals is to give pedestrians the ability to control the flow of traffic to cross safely. They work to keep traffic flowing more than a traditional light, not activating if no one is there.
The project will cost over $3.8 million but 62% of that funding will come from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization.
The town hopes it will provide more than safety but also better connectivity and improved access and traffic flow on the west side.
For walkers like Haynes, it’s a project welcomed with open arms.
“It’s getting much better. The government started listening to people, and it’s better than it was a long time ago. We’re starting to get stuff done now,” Haynes said.
The project construction is set to begin in 2025. The town is still in the design phase.
