Council approves safety upgrades for Bear Creek Parkway
| As repaving efforts on Bear Creek Parkway enter their final stretch, City Council has approved a new pavement marking proposal intended to slow down drivers and improve traffic flow between Whitley Road/Elm Street and Rufe Snow Drive. Once the new paint goes down — as early as next week — drivers will encounter narrower travel lanes and several new turn lanes directing traffic into Bear Creek Park and its surrounding neighborhoods. Eastbound traffic will see dedicated left turns at Austin Street, College Street, Roy Lane, Cindy Court, Apache Trail, Anita Avenue, Gloria Street, and Pate Orr Road South, as well as into the driveways for Bear Creek Intermediate School. Meanwhile, a short stretch of dual-left markings will handle eastbound traffic turning north onto Park North Lane and westbound traffic turning south onto Bear Creek Park Road. Finally, left-turn lanes will direct westbound traffic into the trailhead parking lot near the Rufe Snow Drive intersection, onto Elaine Street, and into Bear Creek Park’s eastern lot. In addition to the new lane designs, residents will notice improvements around the crosswalks on both ends of the park, including “sharks teeth” pavement markings that help catch drivers’ attention as they approach and encourage them to keep their distance from the crosswalk, and additional sets of flashing warning signs that activate when a pedestrian hits the button to cross. We’ll also be marking a new crosswalk spanning Bear Creek Parkway at Pate Orr Road South (and adding an accompanying sidewalk on the south side of the road), completing the connection of Pate Orr’s new sidewalks into the trail system. Weather permitting, this project remains on track to wrap up by the end of the month. |
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