Archive: News

Should there be a traffic light on the exit from the school campus at Ludlowville Rd. and 34B? That was a question the Lansing School Board considered at their regular Monday night meeting on August 23. Concerns for safety have arisen because of the new traffic pattern proposed as part of the Phase II capital improvement project.

Board member Glen Swanson did some research on what it would take to get a light installed. He noted that a lot of attention was being paid to the traffic pattern on the campus, but not as much given to how traffic enters and exits. He visited the Sheriff's office to get statistics on accidents at the intersection. In the last year there were 26 accidents, with eight people hurt. There were no deaths.

He then talked to a State traffic engineer who recommended a traffic study be conducted to present to the State Department of Transportation (DOT). The concerns are that it is difficult to navigate into the blind curve, and that children cross 34B to get to school from the Myers area. Mr. Swanson was told that it would cost $80,000 to install a light if approved. Some State money might be available, but it is generally the responsibility of the body requesting the light to install it. He also thought it would be worthwhile to study why so many parents drive their kids to school instead of riding the school busses.

Gregory Horst, of the landscape architecture firm Appel Osborne, explained that a traffic study would cost $4,800. It would be conducted by a certified expert from a Syracuse engineering firm. "When working with the DOT you must follow their process, or it doesn't happen," he explained. The State doesn't like to add new traffic lights unless there is a history of deaths at an intersection. However other factors can contribute to their approving a light. A traffic study is the first step toward convincing them a light is needed. Mr. Horst suggested conducting it in the Fall when traffic is back to normal for the time when school is in session.

The board expressed concern about the cost of a study if it wasn't going to get them anywhere with the DOT. "You have to try," said Mr. Horst. "$5,000 isn't that much money when you consider the safety of a child."

The decision on whether or not to pursue the idea will be an action item in the first September meeting.

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