Changes Could Be Made To Flow Of Traffic On Napier Avenue

napieravenue2-7
napieravenue2-7

Napier Avenue could soon be put on a road diet. Southwest Michigan Planning Commission Associate Planner Ryan Fellows tells WSJM News after a long series of studies on Napier Avenue from the St. Joseph River to I-94, it was determined some traffic changes should be made.

“The study has found that it would be a safer configuration to change that to one lane in each direction with a center turn lane so you have a dedicated left turn there,” Fellow said.

That means changing the road from two lanes of travel in each direction to one lane of travel in each direction. Fellows says the studies have determined there would be a minimal traffic impact, but big safety benefits.

“Over time we’ve discovered that reduces the risk of having collisions,” Fellow said. “There has been a number of collisions on Napier Avenue in that section.”

The Berrien County Road Department could make that change this year. County commissioners were briefed on it this week by the road department. Fellows says there is still a push to get some sidewalks in along the road, but this road diet for Napier is unrelated.