Bruce Road parking changes pass

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Delaware’s parking and safety committee has passed parking restrictions on Bruce Road.

If also approved by City Council, parking would be restricted on the west side of Bruce Road; and the “No parking here to corner” sign from the northeast corner of Bruce Road would be moved further back to the first driveway.

Currently, there is parking on both sides of Bruce Road. It was noted that The Willows Apartments is on the east side of the road and all of those units had parking spaces, while the west side was residential with children playing. Residents favored restricting parking on the west side.

“I go so slow through there, because I’m so afraid of (hitting) one of those little kids,” said area resident Teresa Wilgus at the committee’s Monday meeting. “I see a ball come out, and the first thing I do is hit my brakes. They just dart out there, and you can’t see them. If there weren’t parked cars there, you’d see them on the sidewalk.”

Area resident Robert Smith said he has had two close calls — nearly hitting a child riding a skateboard on his stomach, and an adult whose legs were sticking out in the street from under a vehicle he was working on.

“If I had hit them, I don’t think I’d be able to drive anymore,” he said. “It’s very dangerous. The congestion is really bad.”

Committee member/councilman Chris Jones said the road, which ends in a cul-de-sac, was in his ward.

“The thing about Bruce Road that drives me crazy is people are allowed to park on both sides, and you can’t get (emergency) equipment down there,” Jones said. “They’re locked in.”

Fire Chief John Donahue called the road a “hot spot,” meaning there were lots of emergency runs to Bruce Road.

Smith also said the parking on both sides of Bruce Road posed a problem in the winter.

“You cannot get a city vehicle in there to clean the roads when they’re parked on both sides,” he said.

Some residents wanted no parking on either side of the road, but the committee would only restrict one side.

Police Chief Bruce Pijanowski said moving the “No parking” sign further back would provide more of a sight line for drivers turning at the intersection of Bruce and Hills-Miller roads. Wilgus called the current situation a bottleneck and “an accident waiting to happen.”

Another resident requested lowering the speed limit from 25 miles per hour to 20 mph. Public service group director William Ferrigno said that by code, the speed limit could not be changed for that type of road, but there could be more enforcement.

Committee members told those who attended the meeting that the parking restrictions would be read as a resolution and voted upon as part of the consent agenda at a future City Council meeting. If approved, the signs could be installed by the end of September, public works staff said.

This photo was taken at noon Tuesday from part way down Bruce Road. Delaware’s parking and safety committee approved moving a “no parking” sign, and restricting parking on the west side of the road.
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/40/2015/08/web1_DSCF6258.jpgThis photo was taken at noon Tuesday from part way down Bruce Road. Delaware’s parking and safety committee approved moving a “no parking” sign, and restricting parking on the west side of the road.

By Gary Budzak

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Gary Budzak may be reached at 740-413-0904 or on Twitter @GaryBudzak.

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