Notes on the news: What a traffic signal means to a community

When Sharon Holbrook, managing editor for The Land, first asked me to write a story about the new HAWK signal in University Circle, my response was, “Heck yeah” (right after I googled “HAWK signal”). 

A HAWK signal (“high intensity activated crosswalk”) gives pedestrians the ability to press a button to signal for traffic to stop so they can cross. They’re often used at midblock to create a safer way for pedestrians to cross busy streets with higher traffic volumes and speeds. 

What took Cleveland so long? While infrastructure changes like narrower streets, curb bump outs and lighted crosswalks can reduce the likelihood of pedestrian crashes, the easiest thing to do is stick with the status quo. This is what economists call “path dependency.” Even simple fixes require political will and money. But the HAWK signal is something different, at least for Cleveland. 

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And while it’s not the type of breaking news other outlets might cover, such as a school closing, winter storm bearing down on Cleveland, or top officials leaving under a cloud of scandal, it’s an important story for The Land because it’s one that is important to social equity in Cleveland. 

There were 74 traffic related deaths in the city in 2021. This year there have been 47 deaths, according to Vision Zero, an initiative that looks to eliminate traffic fatalities through improving pedestrian and commuter safety. Twenty five percent of city residents don’t have cars and rely on walking, biking, or public transit, so this issue affects a lot of Clevelanders. Research finds older people, people in lower income areas, and people of color are disproportionately impacted by these fatalities. 

Many of the city’s most dangerous streets, like E. 55th Street, Carnegie Avenue, and Kinsman Road, are located in majority Black neighborhoods on the east side. The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) just wrapped up work adding turning lanes and upgraded traffic signals to Kinsman and E. 93rd, one of the top 150 most dangerous intersections in Ohio. Readers can share road maintenance concerns, report dangerous intersections, and get involved here. 

In our reporting, we try to include community voices and cover issues that otherwise might get missed, all with an eye towards social equity, and that’s what we tried to do with this story. 

When I grew up here, I remember the streets in Cleveland were wide and fast – that stuck with me since childhood, the unspoken message that Cleveland’s roads weren’t safe, that they were for cars more than people, that they’re places to speed through, not places to linger. That’s changed somewhat since I moved back here as a young adult in the late 1990s. In the past two decades, Cleveland’s added bike lanes, built the Healthline bus rapid transit on the Euclid Corridor, built new rapid stops in University Circle, and opened up access to its lakefront. 

Just this week, Franklin Boulevard between W. 25th Street and W. 85th Street on Cleveland’s near west side reopened as a 25 mph street with mini roundabouts. Previously, residents complained it was like a speedway prone to crashes. I’ll be interested to hear how they react now as we continue reporting on it. 

Some of our most popular stories in 2022 focused on transportation equity issues, including public transit affordability, Ohio City traffic solutions, Bibb’s speed table pilot, slowing down Franklin Boulevard, and painting crosswalks in Slavic Village. Several of these pieces were written by community journalists and interns from Kent State University we’ve worked with and mentored over the past year.

Yet Cleveland’s progress at adding bike, transit, and pedestrian amenities has been slower than many other cities. It was too difficult to advance pedestrian safety projects under the Jackson administration, which sometimes took a “mill and fill” approach to redoing city streets rather than making them places for pedestrians, bikers, and bus riders. It’s not clear yet if Bibb will do better, but advocates say he’s making strides by helping pass new complete and green streets legislation, piloting speed tables, advancing the Midway cycle track design, and allowing street painting and plastic bollards buffering bike lanes. 

To me, that’s what makes the HAWK signal more than just a traffic signal. It’s part of making Cleveland more than a place people drive through – too often speeding. In the new year, we’ll be watching the city’s progress at adding HAWK signals and other pedestrian safety measures. Suggestions? We want to hear them. Contact us here.