Officials take down stop signs on Pennsy Trail after neighbors raise concerns
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The city has taken down signs on the Pennsy Trail in Irvington, after neighbors complained they were dangerous.
Officials are trying to figure out how to replace the signs, which were originally meant to protect pedestrians.
The signs on the trail were stop signs. The signs were smaller than standard stop signs, but looked the same otherwise.
The small stop signs meant to tell runners or people riding bikes on the Pennsy Trail to stop before they crossed the street, but that didn’t always work.
Neighbors said the signs were confusing, because some drivers knew they were for the trail, but others didn’t.
24-Hour News 8 shot video of signs, and saw the issue. Some drivers stopped in the middle of the road, even though they weren’t supposed to, some drivers sped by the signs and others slowed down unsure of what to do.
“They’re deceiving enough, when you’re driving 30-35 miles per hour and you come across one of these, it’s not quite where it’s supposed to be and it’s not quite the right size, but we’re hardwired as drivers to stop when we see one of those. We slam on the brakes,” said Rita Spalding, who uses the trail frequently.
Several neighbors took their complaints to the city, saying they were worried the signs would cause crashes.
24-Hour News 8 called the city and a day later, the city took the signs down.
“I was so glad. I looked out there and saw the guy unscrewing the signs and I was so glad. Because we were lucky nobody got seriously injured or anything,” said Debbie Miller Byers, who lives next to one of the signs.
The trail is a federally funded project through INDOT. Now that the signs are down, the city says INDOT will work to come up with a plan to replace them. The Parks Department said they want to find something that will still get people on the trail to slow down and check their surroundings before crossing the street.
A city spokesperson said there have not been complaints about signs on any other trails.