The Town of Normal will bring some temporary fixes to traffic safety issues across the Illinois State University campus this fall.
The town and Illinois State University launched a pedestrian and roadway campus safety initiative earlier this year. The study gathered more than 1,500 responses through a combination of stakeholder meetings, pop-up events and an online survey.
The survey was part of the first phase of the plan that was completed in June. Ryan Otto, the town's director of public works and engineering, presented a list of findings to the Normal Town Council on Monday.
Normal received state funding this year to study safety after two pedestrian deaths on campus — one in 2021 and another in 2022.
The ISU campus has seen a steady increase in the rate of crashes since 2020, with 6% of the crashes involving either a pedestrian or cyclist, while the rate elsewhere in McLean County and in the State of Illinois is 2%.
Survey responses named problematic tendencies for both foot and vehicle traffic. Both frequently become distracted by technology such as phones and headphones. Pedestrians can lack overall awareness at crossings, sometimes crossing mid-block or without signals giving them the right of way. Motorists and pedestrians often see near-misses due to lack of designated paths or clear signage. Motorists frequently fail to yield to foot traffic.
Intersections were the most frequently mentioned as problem areas for both foot and vehicle traffic — 87% of crashes resulting in serious injury or death occur at intersections, according to town data.
Otto explained the existing conditions on campus as they pertain to use and amenities. Most sidewalks are in good condition and there are few spots across campus where there is a street but no sidewalk. For bicyclists, there are minimal on-street, marked bike facilities and pavement markings are faded. There are ample dismount zones for students to stay off bikes in designated areas with high foot traffic. Many bicyclists use sidewalks across campus rather than the road.
For 14,796 off-campus students in the 2024-25 school year, in addition to faculty and staff, there were 2,013 parking permit spaces available. The survey found that half of all trips made within the campus area are by people walking.
Changes coming
The presentation included eight temporary infrastructure changes to study whether they fix certain problem areas. The Town of Normal will implement them beginning in early September.
Data collection allowed participants to pick places on the map they felt were unsafe.
“You could drop a pin on as many locations as you want, in the survey, and then you could type out your experience,” said Otto. “So we have that data, and it is really interesting to hear what people are seeing and telling us in terms of all these different intersections and issues they see.”
The intersection of College, School and Mulberry was the most frequent mention in the survey, despite not many crashes and no fatalities in collected data. Heading eastbound along College Avenue, that intersection is where drivers split off from the westbound traffic to go around the Hewett-Manchester student residence halls.
The town will install a project at that intersection to close the slip lanes that allow drivers to continue at nearly full speed into a turn, rather than actually entering the intersection.
“A lot of people just fly around the corner,” said Otto. “Students are walking across the street, and a car can almost come in at 30 miles an hour, versus slowing and then making the turn at a slower speed.”
A two-way bike lane also will be added from that intersection along School Street to Constitution Trail.
Pedestrian crossing visibility enhancements will come to the University Street corridor, where there are several faded crosswalks — from parking areas leading to the Quad and Student Fitness Center.
The three intersections along Beaufort Street closest to Watterson Towers also will see changes. The intersection with Fell Avenue that includes Watterson, and the intersection with Broadway that is a two-way stop, will see improvements and traffic calming measures. The School Street intersection will add a crossing demonstration.
In other business Monday, the council approved appointing Monica Estabrook to the Bloomington-Normal Asahikawa Sister Cities Committee. Estabrook has taught art at District 87 for 17 years. She will replace Veronica Kroesch, who resigned.
