The in basket: Dennis Van Ieperen, one of those who crosses Burwell Street many days on his way to work at Naval Base Bremerton said the next intersection east of State Street, where a traffic signal has just been installed for pedestrian safety, needs some revisions.
A Navy person was hit and badly hurt there this winter, he noted. It’s the Chester Avenue intersection.
Visibility of pedestrians is reduced there by a tree and shrubbery that fill what is called a bulb-out, a widening of the sidewalk that lessens the distance to cross the street, he said. Worsening the situation is the position of the street light right above the tree and the fact the pedestrian warning sign on that side of Burwell is farther back from the street edge that its counterpart for westbound traffic.
“You are supposed to detect a pedestrian in the dark behind the bushes and that tree,” he said. “Why is it still there?”.
The out basket: Colen Corey, the acting public works operations manager for the city of Bremerton, replies, “I agree that there is some
vegetation there, however there are 3 signs there indicating a crosswalk
that can be seen from a reasonable distance.
“We at public works are very sensitive to the controversial nature of cutting or removing vegetation from the right of way, but we always strive to do the prudent thing. Currently,
some slight pruning of the shrubbery will be performed to enhance
visibility, but there are no plans to add to or reposition existing
signs at this time.”
Colen included the accompanying photo to support his position.
