By KATIE WISELY
WISH-TV | wishtv.com
There’s a push to change an intersection at the entrance of a small neighborhood in Westfield.
There’s talk of sidewalks at State Road 32 and Willow Creek Way. It’s a future plan that’s being worked out with the city and INDOT.
Originally, the speed limit was 50 miles an hour. A few years ago, it was reduced to 40. Now, it’s 30. But one Westfield resident says that’s not enough.
Beyer
Jose Beyer has lived in Willow Creek for 25 years.
In November of 2017, Beyer was hit on his driver’s side by a car without headlights. A sheriff’s deputy had to get him out of the car. Before his accident, his son was attempting to turn left into the neighborhood eastbound and was rear-ended by a distracted driver.
Beyer says the biggest factor is speed with the amount of traffic on State Road 32. He says more patrol could also be beneficial.
The Westfield Police Department says over the past three years, there have been 21 crashes at Willow Creek Way and State Road 32 – 11 of them resulted in injuries, but no pedestrians or bicyclists were involved.
“They could easily put a bridge/sidewalk on there,” Beyer said. “I don’t see why they can’t do that. They could find a way. They focus so much on Grand Park and most of the older neighborhoods get put aside.”
The City of Westfield says it’s working with INDOT for a future State Road 32 added travel lane project between Westfield and Noblesville.
They are asking for sidewalks to be part of the project.
The city has committed $1 million towards sidewalks on the future project. But some say sidewalks near Willow Creek Way are not an easy fix because of the floodway, which makes construction more difficult and costly.
But sidewalks could appear soon. Construction could start in the next five to seven years – but plans have not been finalized.
Another speed limit change would have to be approved through INDOT, as well as a stoplight.
The City of Westfield says this location does not register in the city’s top 10 accident locations.
In Germany small villages place decorative (flowers, trees) barricades in the road forcing traffic to slow and weave through. This compels drivers to slow down and prevents unfortunate accidents.