Traffic calming, pedestrian crossing upgrades coming to US-23 BR in Rogers City

Fast facts:
- New pavement markings on the US-23 Business Route (BR) in Rogers City should help calm traffic and improve pedestrian safety.
- The left-turn lanes at the US-23 BR/M-68 intersection will be removed, leaving only one lane of traffic for pedestrians to cross in each direction and simplifying the intersection for drivers.
- Painted cross hatching and "special emphasis" crosswalk painting will draw more attention to the crosswalks.

May 7, 2021 -- Sometimes a fresh coat of paint makes a big difference.

When the Michigan Department of Transportation's (MDOT) Alpena Transportation Service Center (TSC) staff was approached by the City of Rogers City with concerns about pedestrian safety, they developed a plan to reconfigure the main US-23 Business Route (BR)/M-68 (West Erie Street) intersection and calm traffic through downtown primarily with changes to the pavement markings. Those changes should be completed next week.

"We were all concerned with drivers not yielding to pedestrians crossing the street, especially school children looking to cross this intersection," said Garrett Dawe, manager of the Alpena TSC. "Maintaining on-street parking was a priority, as was providing more visible cues to drivers at crosswalks and intersections."

Rogers City Mayor Scott McLennan supported the plan, noting that there have been close calls for pedestrians, as well as one crash involving a pedestrian who fortunately was not seriously injured.

"Keeping pedestrians safe at the 3rd Street/Erie Street intersection is certainly a safety priority," McLennan said. "The change to one-lane traffic will be evaluated over time by MDOT and the city to assure this is the best plan to make a safer crossing for pedestrians."

The new pavement markings include striping the centerline to a double-yellow "no passing" line and adding a white edge line giving drivers a clear indication of where the driving lane ends, better matching the downtown context. There will be roughly 4 feet of pavement between the edge line and the outside edge of the on-street parking.

At the US-23 BR/M-68 intersection, the left-turn lanes will be removed at this four-way stop, leaving only one lane of traffic for pedestrians to cross in each direction and simplifying the intersection for drivers. Painted cross hatching in the outside portion of pavement at the intersections and crosswalk painting to the special emphasis "piano key" lines draws more attention to the crosswalks.