Bradford Woods shares traffic calming efforts, seeks easement for pedestrian lane

Traffic calming efforts are being employed along Bradford Road in Bradford Woods to deter speeders.

Methods were presented to residents during the July 14 council meeting.

More police patrolling and installation of two radar speed signs that also track driving behaviors already have been implemented on the road that is well-used by both vehicles and pedestrians.

And, as part of the borough’s annual paving projects later this year, the road lanes will be narrowed, which tends to slow cars down. The borough also is proposing the addition of a pedestrian path.

But the latter can be removed from the project if residents do not want it, according to Rusti Null, manager of Bradford Woods.

“The borough has requested easements from nine property owners to allow for the construction of the pedestrian lane. For the other properties along Bradford Road, the current easement is large enough to accommodate the construction and restoration work,” Null said.

Bradford Road stretches 6,614 linear feet within Bradford Woods. The portion involved in this year’s paving project is from Wexford Run Road to the Pine Township line close to Route 19, with that portion being 4,279 feet, Null said.

“The pedestrian lane portion of the project will have to be canceled without the required easements,” Null said.

In most cases, the existing pavement is wide enough to accommodate the 4-foot pedestrian lane after the vehicle lanes are narrowed. On a handful of properties, the pavement would have to be widened by 6 inches to 2 feet, Null said.

Some residents there said the easement extends too much onto their property.

The roadway narrowing would reduce the width of the lanes on Bradford Road eastbound from the current approximately 13 feet down to 10 feet, according to John Valinsky of LSSE Civil Engineers and Surveyors.

This year’s annual paving project is planned for August or September, after some utility work is finished.

Columbia Gas currently is working on a project to replace its main line under Bradford Road and several other roads in the borough, as well as the service lines from the main line to the individual gas meters.

The borough’s ordinances require that a utility company must restore an entire lane of pavement if they cut into a road for more than 200 linear feet or more than 20% of the width.

“So, essentially, Columbia Gas will be paving half of Bradford Road this year,” Null said.

This is a plus for the borough. Since the borough must only pay for half of the road paving, the annual paving budget allowed for the additional cost to construct and paint the pedestrian lane, as discussed at the meeting.

The traffic calming plans began in July 2024 when a petition signed by 165 residents was submitted to council regarding speeding and pedestrian safety along Bradford Road.

Council agreed to investigate and hired HRG Engineering to conduct a speed and traffic study, which was done in September on two areas of the road, according to Null.

The eastbound direction of Bradford Road had higher volumes, and mitigation was recommended.

In March, the council approved roadway paving projects for the year, which include Bradford Road.

Several residents at the meeting were not in favor of the easements, and some requested other road deterrence, such as lanes on both sides or the use of wider speed humps, which are different than the shorter speed bumps.

“I love the borough, and I want to see a pedestrian walkway on both sides. I think it would be beautiful, but I don’t think we’re set up for it. I’m a big proponet for speed bumps,” said Mike Booth, a 22-year resident of Bradford Woods.

However, there are some issues with emergency vehicles and speed humps, which can be a discomfort for a patient in transport, according to Norm Prycl, captain for the McCandless-Franklin Park Ambulance Authority.

Speed bumps or humps also can hinder the response time for emergency vehicles.

While the borough intends to make this project as “minimally invasive as possible,” easements may be necessary to allow for improvements going forward, borough Solicitor Jacob Leyland said.

Victoria Pongrace, president of borough council, said residents, especially along Bradford Road, should contact the borough manager on whether they are in favor of the pedestrian lane.

“Follow up this week with Rusti and give the borough time to adjust road narrowing plan,” Pongrace said at the July 14 meeting.

Null communicated with the property owners from whom the borough has requested easements and asked them to sign the agreements by July 18. Council will make a decision at its Aug. 11 on whether to proceed with the pedestrian lane plan.

Bryan DeWick, chief of the Northern Regional Police Department, which also covers Marshall, Pine, Richland and Seven Fields, said his officers will continue to keep an eye on traffic in Bradford Woods.

“I stress to everybody, especially pedestrians … just make sure you’re walking against traffic,” he said. “Keeping pets on inside of (the) lane rather than on (the) outside. Keeping eyes open. Earbuds tend to be a problem.”

The area will continued to be monitored.

“We’re tracking that data, and we can relay to NRPD the times of day we’re noticing the most speeders,” Pongrace said.

Regarding stop signs, Leyland said stop signs cannot be installed just for speeding and are only legally enforceable if approved by the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code.