Letters Help Prompt Review Of Green Hill Road From Route 79 To Wildwood Avenue

The town is in the process of reviewing Green Hill Road, from Route 79/Durham Road to Wildwood Avenue, in part due to letters sent to the town's traffic commission following a recent accident there, said Madison Police Commissioner Thom Cartledge. 

Cartledge and other town officials said Thursday evening during a Police Commission meeting that it's too early to tell whether any changes will be made, but they said they are doing a thorough evaluation that has already suggested some options for potential changes. 

In the meantime, Cartledge said, town residents should continue to use common sense and caution while driving, walking, or riding down that road. "I'd like to ask people again to follow the rules of the road while driving," he said. "Kids should stay as close to the curb as possible. Please be a little more aware. Please be a little more courteous." 

Evaluation will include Green Hill Road by town schools

The town's engineering department is conducting an evaluation of Green Hill Road from Route 79/Durham Road to Wildwood Avenue, said Madison Director of Public Works & Town Engineer Mike Ott Thursday evening. 

During a meeting of the Madison Police Commission, which is also the town's Traffic Commission, Ott said the engineering department was asked to take a look at traffic at the intersection of Copse Road and Green Hill, along with traffic on the campuses of the town's nearby schools. The town's middle school and high school are right down the road from that intersection. 

"We are taking a close look west of Route 79 to Wildwood," Ott said during the meeting. He said the evaluation will include an accident history, and traffic history. The evaluation will go back to 2000, so that it will include information about the intersection prior to the completion of the high school, which was built in 2003. 

Signage, road markings, site lines, mowing and geometry taken into consideration

Ott said he also has spent many hours looking at the road, driving it, and examining the intersection. "I spent a good hour driving it both eastbound and westbound," he said. He also took a close look at a number of details including signage, road markings, site lines, road side mowing, and the geometry of the road. 

Ott said he hopes to report back to the police/traffic commission as early as the next meeting, which is scheduled for November 15 at 5:30 p.m. at the Police Department. Ott said it is too early to say whether he will be making any recommendations for changes, but that he has noted some things that might be able to be changed. 

"I noted some things that can be changed. Some are minor. Some are more involved," he said. 

Art Symonds makes an interesting suggestion

Also at the meeting, Madison resident Art Symonds made a specific recommendation. He said he is a substitute teacher at the high school and drives down Green Hill, sometimes several times a week. Symonds said the intersection at Green Hill and Copse Road is sometimes "dangerous." 

He said the majority of people understand how to navigate the intersection, which includes a three-way stop sign. "Most people understand," he said. "But not everyone can master the concept of 1-2-3." He said that one day, going through the intersection, he came very close to having an accident when another motorist suddenly pulled out of Copse Road. "I never saw them. There is no way I could have stopped," he said. 

Still, Symonds said, he is not convinced that the solution lies with the police department and increased enforcement there. "I'm not sure it would be safe to put a cop there to direct traffic," he said.

Fifteen minutes might make a difference?

Symonds suggested that the solution might lie with the Board of Education. "It could be simply done," he said, "by changing the hours of school." When he subs at the high school, he has to be there at 7:05. At Polson, it is 7:15 a.m.

He wondered whether it would be possible to change one of the start times by about 15 minutes. "Problem solved," he said. "The intersection is definitely very annoying and it's dangerous to some extent."

In addition to Symonds speaking at the meeting, Police Commissioner Thom Cartledge, who takes the lead on traffic commission issues, said the town has received about six or seven letters expressing concern about the intersection. He said the letters followed reports of a recent skateboard v. car accident at that intersection, right after school. 

Suggestion deemed "extremely interesting"

Cartledge said that the traffic commission also is reviewing the intersection, with Ott, and Madison Police Chief Jack Drumm. Cartledge said he found Symond's suggestions "extremely interesting." 

"I think I'd like to include that as a possible alternative," he said. 

At the same time, Cartledge asked town residents to be patient with the process. He said there are no easy, quick-fix solutions. "If it takes time, bear with us, we want to do it right," he said. 

Police Commissioner Ed Dowling said he was confident the right people were on the job. "Safety is the goal," he said. "We want that for all of our residents, and particularly for anything this close to our schools."