Staff recommends marked crosswalk at Birmingham Drive and Bridal Lane; commission approves signage and placement

City traffic staff recommended adding a marked crosswalk on the west leg of Birmingham Drive at Bridal Lane rather than at the nearby Ligaille Drive crossing, and the commission approved that recommendation unanimously.

Traffic Engineer Ian Barr and Director of Engineering Dan Nutter told commissioners the Bridal Lane location already has stop control and street lighting, and observed higher pedestrian counts there during data collection. Staff recorded roughly 50–60 pedestrian crossings per day at the Bridal Lane location compared with about two to three at Ligaille Drive.

Nutter and Barr said Ligaille presents constructability constraints: closer intersection spacing (about 150 feet), adjacent residential driveways that would complicate curb-ramp and lighting work, and a limited sight-line area created by vertical and horizontal roadway geometry. They added that an uncontrolled crosswalk at Ligaille could give pedestrians a false sense of security if lighting and controls are inadequate.

Commissioners asked about enforcement at Bridal Lane and whether additional signage could steer pedestrians from Ligaille to the marked crossing. The Commission approved staff’s recommended crossing location and asked staff to provide additional signage advising pedestrians to use the Bridal Lane crossing when heading toward I‑5/freeway access.

Vote: the motion to accept staff’s recommendation and add signage passed with a unanimous vote (5–0). Staff will design and install the marked crosswalk and coordinate with the sheriff’s office on targeted enforcement in the area.

Quotations in this article come from staff presentations and commissioner comments recorded in the meeting transcript.