The need for pedestrian safety improvements

Any student that has walked towards downtown from campus knows one truth about Winona: Broadway is a road that divides our community. Downtown Winona on one side of this four-lane highway and residential areas and universities on the other. There are students that have to cross Broadway every day and are subject to the busy corridor.  Yet it is not just Broadway that provides a bustling avenue for traffic.  Students and community members are also surely aware of the high volume of vehicles that pass through Huff and Main streets, too. 

The danger these roads pose to pedestrians have deeply impacted the WSU community.  We’ve all witnessed the aftermath of the unfortunate accidents that have left several Winona State students either injured or, in the most tragic of situations, without life.  And, while not all traffic accidents will be prevented, the study that was conducted by Stantec, examining improvement options for Broadway, Huff and Main streets, outlined several actionable steps the city could take to improve safety conditions for pedestrians.  Admittedly, these actions would require time, resources and a financial commitment from the city of Winona.

Fortunately, the city has an opportunity to apply for a grant from the Federal Highway Administration that would pay for up to $1 million dollars of a Broadway restructuring project. The project would include transitioning the four-lane highway-style Broadway to a more residential, safe and aesthetically pleasing two-lane road with a middle lane dedicated to turning. This grant would allow the city of Winona to utilize $1 million in federal highway funding to improve the traffic conditions on Broadway, Huff and Main streets.

The city has already invested in small improvements to pedestrian safety through better markings for crosswalks, flashing lights at some pedestrian crossings and speed radars that display a vehicle’s speed as it goes by. These are no doubt a step in the right direction, but it is merely one step in a long walk towards creating a community that values pedestrians as much as it values drivers.  Notably, the Stantec study maintained that “future improvements should focus on enhancing safety along the entirety of the corridors, rather than ‘spot treatments’ at individual intersections.”  Unfortunately, given the city’s limited resources and budget, these “spot treatments” are all we’ve been able to muster.  However, with the help from this federal grant, the city of Winona may be able to take several significant strides towards the needed change, suggested by the Stantec study.

In order for the city of Winona to apply for this grant, however, a majority of the city council must vote to proceed with the application.  Surely, both members of the Winona and WSU communities can see the necessity for pedestrian safety improvements along the Broadway, Huff and Main street corridors; and the unique opportunity the city has been presented to apply for this federal funding.  These improvements are especially necessary given the addition of the “Cal Fremling” floating classroom and the Laird Norton Center for Art and Design to WSU’s facilities which has resulted in an increase of pedestrian traffic on Broadway.

The opportunity to apply for this federal funding will allow the city of Winona to implement many of the recommendations given by Stantec, to improve pedestrian safety.  We all acknowledge the importance of protecting our community members and the dangers these busy corridors pose to that goal.  If you feel strongly, as we do, that the city council should vote to proceed with the application, we urge you to call and write the members of the city council. 

Benjamin Reimler 

President | Winona State University Student Senate

Jack Smyth

Director | Winona State University Alliance of Student Organizations