Volunteers pose for a photo after completing a tactical urbanism project at the intersection of Spring Street and Block Avenue last month.
Courtesy photo
The latest tactical urbanism project is set to be installed this week in south Fayetteville.
The temporary traffic experiment will take place in front of the Yvonne Richardson Community Center at the intersection of Rock Street and Mill Avenue.
The intersection will be converted to an all-way stop and will include three decorative pedestrian crosswalks.
The work will require closure of Rock Street between College and Willow Avenues, and Mill Avenue between Huntsville Road and Rock Street, from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 11. The temporary changes will be in place for two months.
It’s the third official experiment approved in Fayetteville since officials attended a tactical urbanism workshop last November. A temporary mini roundabout was installed at School Avenue and Spring Street in January, followed by intersection changes at Spring Street and Block Avenue last month.
For this latest project, applicant Allison Quinlan, a Fayetteville resident and member of the Planning Commission, hopes to calm traffic at the intersection in front of the community center.
From Quinlan’s application:
To increase the safety and accessibility of the [Yvonne Richardson Community Center] and the adjacent Hayes Park, we propose adding crosswalks and intersection artwork design by the YRCC after school program kids. Additionally we propose to reduce the effective turn radius on west side of the intersection from 55 feet to a more standard 25 feet and add a temporary three way stop sign on the intersection to ensure drivers don’t roll through the intersection and potentially hit a child on foot or bicycling.
Officials said Quinlan will measure and compare pedestrian crossing comfort levels and numbers of drivers who fail to stop or yield at the intersection prior to and during the pilot project time frame. Quinlan said she hopes the project will lead to permanent changes to the intersection.
For more information about tactical urbanism and to complete a feedback survey, visit the city’s website
Got an idea for a traffic experiment?
Residents interested in having their improvement ideas come to fruition are encouraged to apply for a tactical urbanism project permit. Applications are available at fayetteville-ar.gov/tacticalurbanism.
According to city engineer Chris Brown, applications will be reviewed by city staff from the engineering, transportation, police, fire, and parking management departments to ensure the projects meet all necessary safety and procedural requirements.
Additionally, the city has developed a guide to help residents design and install their projects. The guide includes timelines, material suggestions, state and city standards for street and right-of-way projects, installation instructions, and helpful hints for evaluating the success of a project.
