Pedestrian safety and convenience are two main features of improvements on the way for pedestrians in Greenville. At their Monday, June 8th meeting, the Greenville City Council awarded a contract to improve 15 intersections in town.

“Improving the means of transportation in Greenville means not only making things better for cars and trucks, but for pedestrians as well,” said project engineer Tim Corley. "This project will make things much better and safer for people who are trying to walk or use wheelchairs at some of our busiest intersections.”

The City and the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) have identified issues at several intersections along Greenville Boulevard, 14th Street, Arlington Boulevard, and several other roads. The two are partnering to install pedestrian crossing signals (pedestrian heads) and buttons, improve or install wheelchair ramps at the corners, connect to existing sidewalks, and create crosswalks where none exist.

Intersections which would benefit from the improvements the most were identified using traffic and pedestrian volumes, existing sidewalk connections, physical and budgetary constraints, and areas with existing rights of way which would make the project possible.

The project helps achieve portions of two City Council Goals dealing with pedestrian safety and sidewalk improvements. Work is scheduled to get underway in July at a cost of roughly $750,000. The City’s portion is expected to be completed by October with NCDOT finishing by the end of the year.

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