The finishing touches are still being applied to Flossmoor’s renovated downtown streetscape, but the trees were planted on Oct. 31, so the project is, for practical purposes, done.

It looks to me like a thing of beauty. 

I’m not talking about aesthetics. Probably best to wait until the trees and other greenery have a chance to get established before passing judgment on the look of the thing. 

I am referring to the safety enhancements. 

Safety was the primary mission of the project. Discussions and planning started shortly after several pedestrians were struck by a vehicle in 2017. No one was seriously hurt, fortunately, but the incident got the community’s attention, and village officials started planning and searching for funding to make the downtown area safer for pedestrians.

The safety features include: 

• Curb extensions at three corners and in front of Flossmoor Station. The narrowing of the roadway encourages motorists to slow down, especially when making turns, and gives pedestrians a shorter trip across the street, which reduces exposure to traffic.
• Traffic splitters at three points around the island. The splitters help guide vehicles into lanes, increasing traffic predictability. With the previous open spaces, vehicles could range far and wide and often did, especially to get around other vehicles temporarily parked at the mailbox on the west side of the island. The mailbox has been moved to Central Drive, which also helps improve traffic flow and safety.
• New mini-curb. A slightly raised concrete curb runs from the curb extension on the southwest corner of Central Drive down Sterling Avenue to the curb extension at Flossmoor Road. It nudges traffic away from cars parked diagonally on the west side of Sterling. That little buffer could help reduce crashes as cars back out of parking spaces.
• Crosswalks are more visible. The faux brick pattern and red color with white outlines provide good contrast with the dark asphalt, making them easier to see for pedestrians and drivers.

Flossmoor paid for the project with help from an Illinois Transportation Improvement Program grant that was awarded in 2023.

Downtown Flossmoor also has more places to gather, with 26 benches, by my count. Hope I didn’t miss any.

I’m glad to see the new bike racks. The slightly ancient rack on the east side of Sterling just north of Flossmoor Station has been replaced with upside down U-shaped structures that are easier to use. There is a new set of racks on the southwest side of Flossmoor Public Library, too.

I bike to downtown Flossmoor nearly every day. It feels safer now. Beautiful.

Speed monitoring beacons help

Not to brag, but every time I pass one of the new speed monitoring beacons on 183rd Street between Gladville and Highland avenues, the sign lights up with a cheery “Thank you!” That’s because the speed limit is 30 mph and I’m usually poking along at an excessively compliant 10 to 12 mph. 

I appreciate the affirmation for my excellent driving practices. 

But I’ve noticed that cars and trucks are doing a little better, too, since the beacons were installed on Oct 13. 

Jack Hrymak, who lives on 183rd Street near the new beacons noticed the same thing and reported his observations to the village board at its Oct. 14 meeting.

“I haven’t seen so many red taillights in my life, and I’ve lived down that street for 36 years,” he said, referring to drivers who slow quickly when they notice they are speeding. “I appreciate you doing something. (Traffic) has slowed down for now. I’m still for the road diet.”

Hrymak referred to a plan originally proposed in 2007 and resurrected in 2022 that would convert 183rd Street from four lanes to five (two travel lanes, one turn lane, two bike lanes). Later in the same meeting the board voted to try other methods of reducing speed on the street — increased enforcement and signage, mainly — and deferred the lane reconfiguration indefinitely. 

Hrymak said he thinks the effect of the beacons will be localized to the block they’re on and that the effect might be relatively short lived.

The new beacons are upgrades from the ones near Homewood’s elementary schools. In addition to a nice “thank you” message for vehicles going the speed limit or less, the speed numbers turn red and the message reads “slow down” for vehicles going above 30. The monitor doesn’t display any speed at all when vehicles are traveling more than 41 mph, but the message changes to “too fast!”

Most vehicles I’ve seen light up the beacons with red, indicating they are going between 31 and 41 mph, and a few are still breezing by at 41-plus. So the beacons are helpful but not significant contributions to the safety problems on 183rd Street.