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Debate over stop signs and speed mitigation at Wimbledon intersection ends without decision
Summary
After a lengthy, sometimes heated exchange featuring residents and traffic engineers, the commission deferred action on a staff recommendation to change stop‑sign control at a skewed Wimbledon/Pleton intersection and asked staff to propose alternatives, including flashing beacons or full signalization.
A protracted debate late June 22 ended without a final decision on traffic control at the Wimbledon/Pleton intersection. Transportation staff had recommended changing a skewed intersection into two two‑way stop controls (north/south) because existing geometry and the new cape‑seal alignment make placement of east/west stop signs non‑compliant with the Michigan Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MMUTCD) and the state vehicle code.
Transportation staff and the engineering consultant explained the technical problem: when the roadway is reconfigured into two offset intersections the stop signs cannot be located in the required distances without creating non‑conforming layouts or all‑way stops that would not meet sight‑distance criteria. Engineers and staff recommended traffic‑control changes that follow state guidelines rather than placing stop signs outside the distances prescribed in the MMUTCD.
Residents strongly objected. Multiple speakers said removing or altering the existing stop controls will make Wimbledon into a faster “raceway” outside small yards where children play; several urged either keeping the signs or installing stronger mitigations — lighted crosswalk beacons, temporary platform speed tables (removable for winter plowing), or a full traffic signal — to slow cars.
Commission action and next steps: commissioners voted to pend the staff recommendation and asked staff to return with additional mitigation options and clearer engineering plans. Commissioners emphasized public safety, directed staff to explore flashing beacons, temporary platforms that can be removed for plowing, and the feasibility/cost of full signalization, and asked that the matter return with alternatives rather than an immediate vote to remove existing stop control.
Provenance: Transportation staff presentation, extended resident public comment and commission discussion (SEG 5340–5760).
