First obvious question--has Smith already submitted these concerns to 311? If not, it's just background noise to the Transportation Dept. (perhaps less so following your blog post though). Although on a smaller scale I've had satisfactory outcomes with similar light timing issues in my neighborhood via 311 requests.

These push buttons are having such a negative impact on the walking experience in Southeast Baltimore. No only is it inconvenient, it's also unsafe. Drivers have become more aggressive and there is more jaywalking. I've lived in Fells Point for 6 years and the recent changes made to the signals has hurt one of the main reasons I love living here - walkability.

I don't think I understand. Do the buttons not work? Press the button, I bet there is probably a sign that says "press the button to walk".

I'm fine with having to press the button, it doesn't bug me. Maybe what you should be requesting is what happens at President/Pratt and Lombard/Light where the pedestrian gets 5 - 10 seconds of 'walk' time before vehicles are given a green light.

Till then, get over it, press the button, that is what it is there for. It's no Christmas decoration ya know?

I think the bigger battle you should be focusing on is the fact that in any cross walk pedestrians do not have the right away. Cars will run you over rather than let you walk. Police don't care. Now that is a problem!

Philip- the issue is not just pressing the button. The issue is that when you do press it the time to cross before traffic commences again has been drastically reduced to 10 seconds. If you have ever tried crossing with a child, you would know that usually gets you about halfway across before a car proceeds. As you said yourself, they don't exactly yield to pedestrians either.

Something similar has occurred at Charles and Eager and Charles and Read. See my comments on the Brew.

Essentially, this design requires that everyone will have to wait to legally cross a street. One will never get the break of catching the "walk" just as one arrives. It will make getting around more difficult and much slower. This is esp. true when one considers the mentality of removing MTA stops. This way it will take even longer to get around

Phillip- The issue is not just pushing the button, the issue is that when you do press the button the cross time has been dramatically reduced to 10 seconds. If you've ever tried crossing Eastern or Fleet with a young child you would know this gets you about halfway across with no grace period before the oncoming traffic begins again. As you stated yourself, drivers don't exactly yield to pedestrians in the walkway.

As a mother with two young children (a preschooler on foot and an infant in a stroller), it is VERY difficult to make the walk signal in time. Further, the buttons have been located too close to these very busy intersections for my three-year-year old to press (as three-year-olds inevitably want to). Even with the signal, there is hardly enough time for the three of us to make it across the street, particularly with a young child on a bike or scooter, who is wont to drop a shoe, ball, or toy into the middle of the street. This feels very unsafe--and in fact hostile to walkers and families in the neighborhood. If the city is trying to attract more families, they ought to reconsider this.

A legitimate request to a city official is "background noise"? 311 can be useful-- that I agree with, but when a change occurs that demonstrates a shift in thinking why not address it at this level? My tax dollars are paying for changes that make no sense. These push buttons are totally appropriate in areas where few there is little pedestrian traffic, not on neighborhood streets. Fells Point is not a throughway.

This has been implemented in Mt Vernon as well. MY favorite is at the intersection of Charles and MAdison. The north side of Madison has a button to cross Charles St. but the south side (along the edge of the park) has NO button. If you are a pedestrian waiting for the walk signal there you will wait a VERY long time. This city is getting out of hand with its friendliness to pedestrians. In Mt Vernon, there are a pluthera of intersections with no painted crosswalk. At the intersection of Cathedral and Chase, crews repaved the road 2 years ago, and NEVER repainted the crosswalk.

Some commenters may not understand the effect of the buttons. If you arrive at the intersection when the light is green, formerly you could cross immediately. Now you have to wait an entire light cycle (often 150 seconds here in Montgomery County).

We have the same problem in downtown Bethesda and Silver Spring. Of course, the Montgomery County DOT makes no pretense of having a "complete streets" policy - it recently objected to pedestrian and bicycle improvements on Rockville Pike, for example, on the grounds that the purpose of the road is to move cars at high speed into D.C.

I didn't know people actually waited for cross signals in Baltimore. I've certainly never seen it.

That being said, I've interacted with these new "improvements" and agree that they are a step completely out of line with walkable communities and that these changes should be reversed immediately.

I also agree that crosswalk painting should be a priority. Why are there no mid-street bollards and crosswalks near Penn Station on Charles and St. Paul? Why are there few painted crosswalks in Mt. Vernon?

Please give us more time to cross. Weve lived in Upper Fells for 10 years and this is definitely a nuisance. And thats not just because we have a 5 and 7 year old in tow. In DC every light has a countdown clock, which I love. Please Baltimore lets do the same.

Phillip - I think Nina has already addressed your main point. I'd like to add that the crossing at Pratt and President is hardly one to hold up as a model - while pedestrians get a walk signal in every cycle, the timing is designed to force pedestrians on the southern side of Pratt to cross in two stages, giving drivers turning right onto President St the full right of way after about 8 seconds.

I am the owner of a Montessori program in upper Fells Point and it concerns me that my children may be in danger walking to and from our location as many of them cross these intersections. Now that the weather is nicer it is essential for children to be taken out for walks or to the park. We must remember that most of these children don't have or have a limited space to call backyard/play space. We need to give children priority and this needs to be reversed.

This is what you get when you have a retired State Highway Administration (SHA) traffic engineer running the Traffic Division under an aloof Transportation Director and Mayor - neither with vision. The SHA, in the past, was directed not to build sidewalks as part of their roadway projects - peds weren't important, only AUTOS. I am supporting Otis Rolley for Mayor.

Anita- you are so right about DC. Why can't we look to other cities successes to make improvements that make sense for our communities? I fail to see how the buttons make sense!!! From what I have read it seems to be common knowledge that this sort of setup is great in the county not in the heart of the city.

I highly suggest that people with complaints use the online form for city 311. I wrote to them about an intersection which I felt has had too many accidents, and also about the remnants of the accident left near the storm drain a day later. Within 24 hours, I received a copy of the report of the last inspection they did on the signal there and the auto parts debris was removed from the gutter. DOT even sent out a person to check to make sure the ALL RED time had stayed the same since the changes were implemented last January.

This forum is a great place to gripe about what the city hasn't done for you, but if you feel like something needs to be done, its up to you, the citizen, to be the squeaky wheel asking to be greased.

I'll bet Crosswalks @ Cathedral has not complained to 311 about not painted crosswalks, nor has the original reader who inspired this.


"You may never know what results may come of your action, but if you do nothing there will be no result" - Mahatma Ghandi

The biggest issue and concern is that my family of 3 little kids do not have enough time to cross the street now. It is very scary and drivers are so agressive and inconsiderate.

Part of the beauty of living in Fells Point is that we can walk everywhere - to school, to support our local stores, to buy groceries. These changes have really made walking with little kids very very stressful.

Many families (mine included) with pre-school & elementary kids attending the Montessori New Century School on Ann St walk to school especially during good weather - we have all noticed how much more dangerous crossing those intersections have become.

We are definately fighting to have our voices heard and to make this safer and more family-friendly!