Oswego Hosting Downtown Pedestrian Safety Open House Wednesday

OSWEGO, IL — Following a string of accidents along Washington Street in Downtown Oswego, the village is now asking residents to weigh in on a number of safety improvement iniatives for the thoroughfare. An open house on the topic of Downtown pedestrian safety will be Wednesday at Village Hall.

Washington Street is also known as U.S. Route 34 and is under the jurisdiction of the Illinois Department of Transportation, or IDOT. Since 1997, Oswego officials have negotiated with IDOT for improvements to the main artery through downtown, including adding flashing beacons and reducing the speed limit to 20 miles-per-hour.

But the street has still had a problem with pedestrian and traffic safety. Multiple instances of vehicle-pedestrian crashes have taken place recently, including a crash that killed a pedestrian in 2018, according to the village.

After the events, IDOT is now willing to consider adding traffic signals at either Washington and Main streets or Washington and Harris streets, the village said in a press release. Previously, IDOT said the intersections did not have pedestrian counts to warrant stop lights.

The state will consider adding traffic signals provided the community is in support, according to the village. Oswego officials are seeking to gauge that support at a series of two open houses on the subject.

Oswego residents are asked to weigh in on the topic at the first open house, being held from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 18, at Oswego Villahe Hall, 100 Parkers Mill. Those who cannot make the event can email comments or suggestions to info@oswegoil.org.

Village officials will then incorporate community suggestions into a plan for traffic and pedestrian safety improvements along Washington Street, and will present those plans at a second open house. A date for that open house has not yet been set.

The improvements to Washington Street come at a time when the village is working to boost entertainment options downtown. The village is overhauling Block 11 to improve streetscapes, and a developer has recently begun work to replace a Downtown brown site with a three-story mixed-use building featuring a restaurant.