The Johnson County Transportation Division wants a crosswalk at the intersection of Kirkwood Avenue and Summit Street to allow pedestrians to cross the street more safely.

Cars driving along Kirkwood Avenue have no stop signs, making it difficult for pedestrians to cross, officials say. After receiving numerous phone calls from pedestrians, the city’s Transportation Planning Division conducted a traffic study to investigate whether stop signs along Kirkwood Avenue are necessary, said John Yapp, the executive director of and transportation planner for the Metropolitan Planning Organization of Johnson County.

Because the results of the study did not meet federal criteria for an additional stop sign, the department asked City Manager Tom Markus to implement a crosswalk. The Transportation Planning Division also requested to install an island refuge, which creates a divide between lanes, to which pedestrians could walk and stand on as they wait for traffic to clear.

While painting in a crosswalk would be relatively inexpensive, an island would be in the range of tens of thousands of dollars. There have been no cost estimates done yet, Yapp said. The City Council is expected to address the proposal at its next work session.

— by Asmaa Elkeurti