After years of wear and tear, Magnolia Avenue is finally getting its long-overdue facelift.
The city of Auburn and Auburn University are collaborating to improve the safety and appearance of Magnolia Avenue with new crosswalks, solar-reflectant lights and added landscaping.
Kevin Cowper, assistant city manager, said the idea to improve Magnolia materialized after the city started noticing an increase in pedestrian accidents.
"I think the project is one of improving the appearance of the roadways ... but more important than that, it's going to improve pedestrian safety."
After the city noticed a safety problem, Chris Osterlund, executive vice president of SGA, said the city decided to contact Auburn University because Auburn students were the ones being affected by the accidents.
"They want to not affect the roads as much on the University side and not put up barriers or gaudy things, but ultimately they want people to be safe," Osterlund said.
"What their hope is, from a University standpoint, is to get people to use these sidewalks and crosswalks while they are traversing the street."
In the past, Magnolia's crosswalks were indicated with striped white paint.
Cowper said they will keep the striped paint for added visibility, but will add patterned concrete to indicate where to walk. They will also reinstall all of the solar-reflectant lights to shine at night.
In addition to safety, the city wants to improve the appearance of Magnolia.
"You've probably also seen at the end of Magnolia between Donahue and College, there's some small landscape islands just to enhance the appearance of the road," Cowper said.
One thing the city will be installing is something that hasn't been seen on Auburn roads before.
They will install digital signs over the road.
"These will be big signs that will be mounted on poles that come out over the roadway," Cowper said. "It will warn that this is a pedestrian area--drive carefully. Something like that."
Cowper said the majority of the project should be fully opened by Aug. 31 and all of the lanes on Magnolia will be reopened, but they still have more work to do.
"The project will continue probably through next week," Cowper said. "Some of the striping I was talking about, reinstalling pedestrian crossing signs, the landscaping that we'll be doing in the small medians, that will all occur in two or three weeks."
The digital sign will be installed during winter break.
"You'll be looking at a December time frame for the signs," Cowper said.
Osterlund said once all of the improvements are finished, facilities will monitor how it's working.
"Hopefully they won't have to do anymore," Osterlund said. "On the complete opposite side of the spectrum, if it continues to be an issue, and students or University affiliates aren't using the crosswalks, they may have to resort to channelization, and that requires putting up railing on the University side."
Putting up railing would make it impossible for students to cross the street without hopping the rail.
Osterlund said none of their plans after the project is finished are set in stone.
"I think it will definitely encourage pedestrians to use the proper crossing places as well as remind drivers to be more conscientious of pedestrian traffic," Osterlund said.
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