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Waukegan committee updates signs and signals after resident raises safety concerns
Summary
The Waukegan Public Works and Infrastructure Committee on July 21 approved amendments to the city code to change traffic control at three intersections after a resident described a recent unsafe encounter; the measures include a new stop sign, a traffic signal and limits on right turns on red when pedestrians are present.
The Waukegan Public Works and Infrastructure Committee on July 21 approved an ordinance amending city code sections on traffic-control devices to add a stop sign at a Country Lane intersection, install a traffic signal at Sunset and Northern and change the Jackson and Glen Flora intersection to prohibit right turns on red when pedestrians are present.
The committee moved the ordinance after public comment from Rayon Edwards, a Waukegan resident, who described a recent incident near Beverly and Green Bay roads that prompted concerns about pedestrian and driver safety and about police coverage late at night. "My sister is pregnant. She got to the stoplight at Beverly or Green Bay, and two people ran to her car," Edwards said during the meeting. He also told the committee that the city has "14 patrolmen for our entire city" on third shift and asked aldermen to consider safety impacts when passing measures.
The ordinance updates specified code sections so citations and enforcement will reflect the new signs and signals. Committee members said updating the ordinance is necessary because, without an updated code entry, a citation tied to a newly placed sign or signal could be invalid. The ordinance text as presented identifies the specific code sections being amended as 21-59, 21-63 and 21-75 of the City of Waukegan code.
Committee members described the changes in more detail: the Country Lane location replaces a yield sign with a stop sign after a resident petition and an internal review; Sunset and Northern, currently a four-way stop, will receive a signal where staff identified a history of crashes; and the Jackson and Glen Flora location will change from a time-limited no-turn-on-red (7 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays) to a no-turn-on-red rule that applies when pedestrians are present for all legs of the intersection.
Aldermen recorded a unanimous roll-call vote in favor of the ordinance. The committee chair called the question, the roll call was taken and the motion passed.
Rayon Edwards’ remarks occurred during the meeting’s public-comment period; the traffic-code amendment was considered later on the agenda under the committee’s new-business items. Committee members acknowledged Edwards’s account during the discussion and said residents’ safety concerns were heard as they voted.
