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Council pauses Riverview speed study after staff modeling suggests limits may not fall; crosswalk safety and enforcement debated
Summary
Engineers reported model runs and outside advice indicating a full speed study could result in raised limits; council declined to spend the $15,000–$22,250 quotes and instead directed staff to consult ODOT on crosswalk and signage options and consider enforcement.
Napoleon councilmembers debated whether to proceed with a budgeted speed study on Riverview Avenue after staff said preliminary modeling and retired-Odot expertise indicated the study might not lower posted limits and could even prompt higher limits.
City staff said the Council had budgeted $18,000 for a full speed study. A quote for a study from the western corporation limit to the eastern limit came back at $22,250; a narrower study from the west limit to Perry Street was quoted at $15,388. Chad, the city engineer, said he consulted a retired Ohio Department of Transportation engineer and used federal forms to model various assumptions about average speed and the 85th-percentile speed. “When I put numbers in there ... the speed limit kept getting raised,” Chad said, suggesting the study’s likely result would not lower the limit.
Police and councilmembers raised pedestrian-safety concerns about an existing crosswalk with flashing caution lights near the area. A councilmember said motorists do not always stop, especially given the topography and heavy truck traffic near a turnaround to Campbell Soup. The chief noted the lights are caution (flashing yellow) devices installed under state requirements and that converting them to a red-flashing stop signal may not be allowable without state approval. “Those were designed for the ORC requirements because that project was actually funded by the state of Ohio,” a staff member said.
Councilmembers discussed alternatives including targeted enforcement, temporary radar displays that flash drivers’ speeds, additional signage and working with ODOT on regulatory options. The council's consensus was not to proceed with the costly study at this time and to instead keep the budgeted funds in the general fund, direct staff to consult ODOT about signage and the flashing-light configuration, and explore enforcement options during high-pedestrian seasons.
No formal vote was recorded to spend on the study; staff were directed to follow up with ODOT and evaluate enforcement and signage options.
