New signs slowing motorists in Pioneer Lane school zone

Photo by Randy Moll New traffic signs have been placed along Pioneer Lane in Gentry, to the north and south of the Gentry Public School facilities there, to slow traffic. The signs warn drivers when they are going too fast and tell them to slow down until they are at or less than the 25 mph school-zone speed limit. Then the signs give the speed and thank the drivers. The above photo was taken as a car approached from the north on Thursday afternoon.
Photo by Randy Moll New traffic signs have been placed along Pioneer Lane in Gentry, to the north and south of the Gentry Public School facilities there, to slow traffic. The signs warn drivers when they are going too fast and tell them to slow down until they are at or less than the 25 mph school-zone speed limit. Then the signs give the speed and thank the drivers. The above photo was taken as a car approached from the north on Thursday afternoon.

— To make it safer for students coming and going from the school facilities on Pioneer Lane, the city of Gentry and the Gentry Public School District teamed up to place two radar-equipped signs on Pioneer Lane to post drivers' speeds as they approach the school zone and to warn them to slow down if they are going too fast.

And the signs appear to be working. When a vehicle approaches the school zone going faster than the 25 mph speed limit in the school zone, orange letters warn drivers they are going too fast and tell them to slow down, with their speed flashing in large block letters on the sign. Once the drivers slow to within the posted speed limit in the school zone, their speed flashes in green and a thank-you message appears.

The number of motorists traveling through the school zone on Pioneer Lane at unsafe speeds when children are present has been a concern to both city and school officials. But then, Kevin Johnston, Gentry's mayor, approached Randy Barrett, the school superintendent, with a plan.

"The Mayor approached me last summer with a proposal to share a project," Barrett said. "Basically, the school would buy the signs and the city would install and maintain them. I saw it as a win-win and agreed," Barrett said.

"The school and city have both made an intentional effort to support each other's efforts to make Gentry a safe place to live," Barrett said.

"The installation of the electronic speed signs was a partnership between the Gentry Public School District and the city of Gentry," Johnston said. "Dr. Barrett and I had a conversation about the growth within the district's campuses, area neighborhoods and our shared concerns for the future safety of pedestrians along Pioneer Lane within the school zone and the desire to explore ways for improvements. We agreed to partner on the project by way of the school purchasing the signs and the city installing and maintaining them," Johnston explained.

"We intend to test these units along Pioneer Lane to better understand how they may assist in other parts of the city as well," Johnston said.

"The (school) district and city have had a great working relationship, and I look for that cooperation to continue," he added.

Total cost to purchase the two units was $4,330, according to a price quote provided by Barrett.

The Evolis Radar Speed Signs are promoted by Elan City, makers of the signs, as reducing speed by an average of 25 percent and as creating accurate traffic data reports, including speeds, percentiles, vehicle counts and more.

General News on 01/25/2017