Crashes At Clarendon Hills Intersection Prompt Ideas: Officials

CLARENDON HILLS, IL – Too many crashes are happening at a Clarendon Hills intersection, which is something the village wants to change, officials said.

The intersection is Chicago Avenue at Coe Roe to the north and Norfolk Avenue to the south.

Village officials recommend an all-way stop, which they said would reduce crashes.

In a recent report, an engineering firm suggested either an all-way stop or a roundabout. Local officials rejected a roundabout.

"We do not believe a traffic circle would be a good solution as the number of people walking to school and drivers unfamiliar with traffic circles causes us concern," the village's public works director, Brendan McLaughlin, said in a memo this week.

Clarendon Hills is also looking at a "road diet" for Chicago Avenue near the intersection. In so doing, the village would narrow the road section for eastbound traffic on Chicago Avenue west of Notre Dame Catholic Church's driveway. That would mean a larger parkway on Chicago Avenue's south side and allow for more trees to be planted there.

"These changes should help to slow traffic," McLaughlin said. "It would also shorten the distance for people crossing Chicago Avenue at Middaugh Road."

Officials also suggest a north-south crosswalk across Chicago Avenue at Prospect Avenue. This would make it safer for pedestrians and bicyclists going to the Hinsdale Golf Club, they said.

The Village Board plans to discuss the recommendations at its meeting Monday.