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Expect Delays in Hartselle: State to Replace 2 Aging Traffic Signals With Temporary Stop Signs
The Decatur Daily (Alabama)
December 17, 2008
HARTSELLE -- If those traffic delays in downtown Hartselle bother you, expect them to worsen after the first of the year.
In conjunction with the city's downtown revitalization project, the Alabama Department of Transportation has decided to replace two aging traffic signals.
Main Street traffic
This means the state will temporarily put four-way stop signs at Main and Sparkman streets, and Main and Hickory streets. About 10,750 vehicles use Main Street every day, according to DOT.
"I'm sure this is going to cause some delays," said Jeff Johnson of the Department of Development.
Mayor Dwight Tankersley said the city may use police officers to direct traffic during busy hours.
"This is a high-volume traffic area, and if we don't direct, traffic may backup during peak hours," he said.
The state has talked about replacing the lights for at least five years but has not been able to do it because of Hartselle's canopy configuration.
Canopy replacement
The city is replacing the aging canopies in a way that will allow the state to install new poles and traffic signals.
"The poles are already on site, but we don't expect them to start this until sometime shortly after the first of the year," Johnson said.
The two signals the state is replacing are the oldest in District 1, which includes nine North Alabama counties.
"The signals are obsolete, don't meet state regulations and the state can't even get parts for them anymore," Johnson said. "The state decided to piggyback on our project and replace the lights."
Johnson said the seven poles the state will install are aesthetically similar to material Hartselle is using in its revitalization project.
The new lights also will have loop detection signals, meaning motorists will wait less for signal changes when there is no traffic.
As for the streetscape project, Tankersley said, workers are about 80 percent complete.
The city is using a $480,000 federal grant to modernize the look of downtown by replacing the more than 30-year-old, almost flat canopies.
Downtown revitalization
This is a two-phase project. The first includes replacing canopies on both sides of Main Street from Railroad to Sycamore streets and installing 14 curb-out planters.
The city has received a second federal grant for $309,000 to cover Phase 2, which includes business fronts from Sycamore to Corsbie streets.
Hartselle is providing a $120,000 match for Phase 1 and $78,000 for Phase 2.
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