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Councilwoman: Letter to ODOT is 'groveling'
(by Sue Reid - December 07, 2011)
Councilwoman: Letter to ODOT is 'groveling'
By SUE REID
A letter drafted to the Ohio Department of Transportation by Solon's traffic engineer regarding safety concerns surrounding guardrails on Route 422 sounds like the city is "groveling," Councilwoman Toni M. Richmond said Monday.
Ms. Richmond went on to state that she is not signing the letter because it does not comport with the motion she introduced last month that council unanimously approved. That motion was that correspondence be sent to ODOT, as well as the governor's office, to either modify the way the guardrails are installed or remove them entirely.
"That was the motion that carried," Ms. Richmond said.
Mr. Westbrooks' draft letter dated Dec. 5 instead asks that ODOT reconsider or re-evaluate the guardrails.
"It should contain stronger language than that," she said.
The letter to Jaclyn Schafer, public information officer with ODOT, was prepared by the city's traffic engineer following City Council's meeting late last month. It was to be reviewed by city council and Mayor Susan A. Drucker.
The letter begins by first thanking ODOT for responding to the city's 2010 request for the need to address crossover crashes on the freeway. It goes on to say that the city understands that a nearly $1 million dollar project was constructed and in place just over a year after the city's initial request.
"The letter is prefaced with our gratitude for installing the guardrails," Ms. Richmond said, "and I'm not really grateful." It is also prefaced with the fact ODOT spent $1 million, Ms. Richmond said. "We obviously did not get what we asked for.
"There seems to be so much concern about not making ODOT angry because they dish out millions of dollars," Ms. Richmond said. "The bottom line is that ODOT probably won't take them out, but we have an obligation to our citizens to try."
Ms. Richmond said that her position on the issue should not be a surprise to her fellow council members because she sent an email to them 10 days before making the motion last month of her desire to do so. She said she did not hear back from anyone. Councilman William I. Russo was not in attendance at the council meeting where the motion was passed.
"Everyone received the email and no one responded, so I made the motion," Ms. Richmond said.
The issue was discussed at City Council's safety and public properties committee as well. At that time, Mr. Russo stated that he would feel more comfortable with the letter coming from Mr. Westbrooks than the clerk as the traffic engineer routinely deals with ODOT.
Ms. Richmond also prepared language for a letter and emailed it to her fellow council members. She said that only two council members responded to that email. She notified all of council that she wrote a draft and asked if they wanted a copy.
Mr. Russo said Tuesday that if a letter were to go out, he would be comfortable signing the one drafted by Mr. Westbrooks, but not Ms. Richmond's.
"The reason for that is that I am concerned that if the guardrail is removed, the city has more of a legal exposure if there is a crossover accident because we removed the safety barrier that was well within the design standards of the state of Ohio," Mr. Russo said. "The fact of the matter is that the guardrail itself is not causing the accidents. It is there to prevent crossover accidents."
Mr. Russo also said of the concern about the rebound effect into traffic due to the location of the guardrails, that "if that really is a serious issue, then we should be seeing that all over the state of Ohio because this is not the only location where these guardrails are." On Route 77, "people manage to drive where the concrete barrier is even closer to the road, and there does not seem to have the rebounding effect.
"The fact of the matter is, the barriers are new here and people need to slow down," Mr. Russo said. "Drivers' inabilities to control their vehicle will cause them to go off the road."
Councilman Robert N. Pelunis said the letter drafted by Mr. Westbrooks is a "decent letter, not as strong as I wanted, but better than nothing."
Mr. Pelunis said it is a matter of wording. "It could have been a little stronger," he said. The letter is "sort of appeasing ODOT," he said.
"I think we can work this out and come up with a letter everyone is pleased with," Mr. Pelunis said, and will result in a safe environment for the motoring public.
"I don't agree with it, and I don't intend to sign it," Ms. Richmond said of the draft letter prepared.
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