Pedestrian Safety Projects May Be Delayed Until Spring In Newtown Twp.

NEWTOWN TOWNSHIP, PA — Depending on the weather, two pedestrian safety projects may not begin until spring, the township's engineer told the board of supervisors this week.

In his report to the board, engineer Dominic Cundari said the contractor is looking for a good stretch of weather to break ground for the installation of warning beacon lights at Silo Drive and North Sycamore Street and at a mid-block crosswalk at Tara Boulevard and Newtown-Yardley Road.

“There is a significant amount of concrete work so we want to wait for some good weather, some warmer weather,” said Cundari. “We’re waiting for a good window of opportunity to start now that the holidays are behind us. We don’t want to start until we know we can complete it without any delays.”

The supervisors in October awarded both projects to T. Schiefer Contractors Inc., which submitted the low bid of $391,915 for the project and an alternate bid of $117,000 for decorative poles.

Grants from PennDOT's Automated Red Light Enforcement (ARLE) Program and the state Department of Community and Economic Development will fund the project.

The work will include the installation of a push button Rapid Flashing Beacon at Tara Boulevard and the Newtown-Yardley Road and a warning beacon at Sycamore Street and Silo, which has been the site of numerous pedestrian accidents and fatalities.

Residents from Newtown Walk have lobbied the township for the past two years for safety measures at the mid-block Tara Boulevard crossing worried that someone would eventually be struck and killed.

The residents had reported numerous near misses at the Tara crosswalk, which is heavily used by the residents of Newtown Walk to access the Newtown Trail on the south side of the Newtown-Yardley Road.

As part of a multi-pronged approach to address the issue, residents lobbied successfully for a reduction in the speed limit to 25 mph on the Yardley-Newtown Road between the borough line and Terry Drive.

Since then they have been pressing the the township for a warning beacon, which is designed to alert motorists when a pedestrian is using the crosswalk.