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Committee favors pedestrian‑activated beacons and a traffic‑calming policy for Dallas/Westminster crossing
Summary
After residents raised safety concerns about children crossing Dallas Road at Westminster, staff proposed flashing‑beacon options and council members signaled consensus to pursue a pedestrian‑activated rectangular rapid flashing beacon (RRFB) and to direct staff to develop a traffic‑calming policy for the city.
Dennis Carr, the interim city administrator, described safety concerns raised at a previous meeting and presented two shortlists of traffic‑calming options for the Dallas/Westminster intersection, recommending either a steady flashing beacon or a pedestrian‑activated rectangular rapid flashing beacon (RRFB).
“We have those on Business 24,” Carr said when describing the devices, and added: “anything that draws attention to there being a pedestrian in that crosswalk would be a huge benefit, and I believe it would add quite a bit of safety to it.”
Several council members said they favored a pedestrian‑activated RRFB over a constantly flashing beacon. Alderson Blundy said the RRFB would be more effective because pedestrians must push the button to activate the device: “If someone's there and they intentionally push the button and flags it, I think in that area, it makes a lot of sense,” she said.
Police Chief Stevens cautioned on practical limits and enforcement: “The Illinois vehicle code requires a motorist to stop if the pedestrian is on their side of the street…a flashing yellow light does not mean stop,” he said, noting that conditioning drivers to yield sometimes requires a pedestrian‑friendly environment, not just equipment. Several members also raised engineering constraints — drainage, sight lines and nearby utilities — that make raised intersections or large curb modifications expensive or difficult at the location.
Staff estimated the beacon options would cost in the order of other recent local installations (staff referenced approximately the same order as a recent Centennial bike‑path project) and noted that solar power could be constrained by tree canopy. Finance and public‑works staff told the council they would include cost and feasibility details in any RFP.
By the close of discussion, the mayor summarized council direction: install a pedestrian‑activated RRFB at the Dallas/Westminster crossing as the preferred near‑term measure and direct staff to develop a traffic‑calming policy to guide future decisions about stop signs, raised intersections and other measures.
Next steps: staff will return with detailed cost estimates, RFP language and a draft traffic‑calming policy for council review.
