City hopes new light will ease traffic backups
ZANESVILLE — The City of Zanesville will install a traffic light at the intersection of Linden Avenue and Lee Street. Zanesville Public Safety Director Doug Merry said the light is expected to be installed next month.
The light is one of the steps the city is taking to try and ease traffic related to the Interstate 70 reconstruction project. The Ohio Department of Transportation's $88 million reconstruction of I-70 is expected to be completed in the fall of 2027.
Some roads downtown are expected to reopen next month, but others will close.
The closure of the State Street Bridge has funneled traffic onto Lee Street, causing backups on both roads.
On Lee Street "If one person in 20 wants to make a left, you have 19 that aren't going anywhere," said Zanesville Mayor Don Mason. Likewise, if a driver heading north on Linden wants to turn left on Lee Street, heavy southbound traffic makes that difficult, causing backups northbound.
Merry said the city has not yet purchased the light, although they may use the light currently on the closed portion of Muskingum Avenue, since it is not being used to direct traffic through the single lane area of the road since the road is closed. The final cost of the project has yet to be determined, but will be dependent on the source of the light, he said.
The city will also repaint curbs at the intersection to re-enforce no parking within 30 feet of a stop sign or traffic control device.
Heavy traffic on Maple Avenue is increasing frustration as well, Mason said. "Too many people running red lights, it causes too much frustration, and ultimately causes accidents." He has asked the Ohio State Patrol to increase its presence on Ohio 60 "top to bottom." The ZPD is already busy responding to calls within the city, he said.
The city has also stopped granting permission to close city streets during the day, and is trying to move as much utility work as possible to the nighttime hours, when traffic is lighter and delays won't be compounded by increased traffic.
Ohio Department of Transportation Public Information Officer Morgan Overbey said the department hopes to have Sixth and Seventh street open under the interstate by the end of July. When Seventh Street opens, Fifth Street will close for bridge replacement work.
Work on the State Street Bridge is "going well" Overbey said. "We are going to look at the schedule in July to see where this structure is at and when we think it might open and coordinate with the school if we think we are going to affect the beginning of the school year," she said.
There may be future closures of Old Newark Road and Licking Road, Overbey said, but if there are they will be single, overnight closures rather than a full day or more.
Linden Avenue will have "have intermittent closures at night when they are setting beams on the river bridge" in mid- to late-July, she said.
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This article originally appeared on Zanesville Times Recorder: City hopes new light will ease traffic backups
