A tale of stop signs at a Midtown intersection
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The new stop signs, starring Phoebe (Annalise's dog). Photo: Annalise Frank/Axios
👋 Annalise here, reporting that stop signs just got installed at a dangerous intersection in Midtown near my place after some safety complaints.
Why it matters: With only one set of stop signs at Ferry and John R streets and completely obstructed views of oncoming traffic, walking or driving through the intersection required a leap of faith.
State of play: Car parts from collisions were regularly seen at the busy thruway near co-working space BasBlue, the College for Creative Studies and the Detroit Institute of Arts.
- The intersection's problems had been reported to the city by many folks over months (or, more likely, years), including former Axios Detroit reporter and Detroit One Million founder Sam Robinson. My partner and I also flagged them through the Improve Detroit app.
Zoom in: In the app, one user wrote that "countless people have complained and this doesn't change."
- After the recent installation, another user wrote that "it already feels much safer," thanking the city for also placing signs to prevent people from parking too close to the intersection.
💠My thought bubble: I walked to check out the new stop signs right after Robinson posted on X about them, and the first two drivers I saw blew through them.
- I waited and watched while several others slowed but didn't stop.
The big picture: This intersection was by no means the only or worst offender.
- Many residents don't feel Detroit streets are safe, according to the city's 2022 Streets for People master plan that aims to improve safety through education and road improvements.
- More than 100 people are killed per year in crashes here, per the report. Residents with additional needs such as children, older people and low-income people also tend to live near high-risk roads.