A roadway speed bump caused a sudden jolt in Somerton when it popped up unexpectedly near the neighborhood’s SEPTA train station last month. But Streets Department Commissioner David Perri smoothed things over last week, announcing the removal of the bump.
During the Sept. 9 meeting of the Somerton Civic Association, Perri briefed residents of numerous Streets Department projects and activities in the area, including the ill-conceived traffic control device.
The commissioner attributed the Aug. 20 installation of the bump on Station Road near Maple Avenue to “an overzealous district highway engineer.” City Councilman Brian O’Neill, who also spoke at the Somerton Civic meeting, said that residents of the neighborhood have complained to him repeatedly about speeding cars and motorists disobeying stop signs at Station and Maple, although he was unaware who decided to install the speed bump there. The councilman was drafting a letter to Perri about the intersection’s problems, but had not sent the letter by the time the speed bump appeared late last month.
The bump triggered a whole new set of complaints from neighbors and motorists. It was too tall, too narrow, too close to a bend in the road, lacked proper warning signs and posed a safety hazard, according to O’Neill.
In an interview with the Northeast Times after the civic meeting, Perri confirmed that the speed bump did not conform with city regulations for traffic control devices that mirror state guidelines. Speed bumps are illegal on public streets, although similar devices known as “speed tables” may be considered in specific areas depending on the circumstances. Speed tables are about 10 feet wide, Perri said, while speed bumps are narrower and more appropriate for use on private driveways and in parking lots.
Speed tables remain in active use along Blue Grass Road, between Welsh Road and Grant Avenue, in the Northeast, along with several locations elsewhere in the city.
O’Neill and Perri said that city traffic engineers will continue to study Station Road and other local roads for possible improvements.
The Streets Department has many larger projects already in the works, both in the Northeast and across the city, Perri said. The department is finishing up a $17 million signal-improvement project along Bustleton Avenue. The new traffic lights will give SEPTA buses “transit signal priority” that will automatically turn lights green as they approach intersections. This is meant to speed up bus travel and overall traffic flow.
Eventually, the new signals will be tied into a “traffic operations center,” where city engineers will be able to monitor and modify signal patterns throughout the city based on real-time conditions. Philadelphia is the only major city in the country without that kind of capability, Perri said.
In the coming weeks and months, the Streets Department will replace aging overhead signs for the Woodhaven Road expressway in the Northeast, replace and upgrade traffic signals along Castor Avenue and extend Delaware Avenue northward from the Penn Treaty area across Frankford Creek into Bridesburg. The Delaware Avenue project will tie into the Delaware River City Corporation’s new hiking and biking trail system.
Many residents in Somerton can look forward to the return of the city’s vacuum leaf collection program this fall. In selected areas, the Streets Department will send trucks to scoop up loose leaves that residents pile at the curb. No bagging will be required.
In other Somerton Civic business:
• O’Neill reported that city inspectors have issued a cease-and-desist order to a suspected group home on the 1000 block of Southampton Road. Over the summer, neighbors began to complain about what appeared to be a halfway house where several men were living in violation of city code. An inspector visited the site once and issued the violation notice. A follow-up visit is pending to determine if the occupants have complied with the order. If the property is still in violation, the owner and occupants could face additional sanctions.
• Dan Lodise, chief of staff to state Rep. Brendan Boyle, reported that motorists who use Huntingdon Pike between Fox Chase Road and Philmont Avenue should be wary of nighttime and weekend travel restrictions due to construction. A deadline for the work is not known. In addition, Boyle plans to reintroduce a House bill calling for mandatory reporting provisions in the state’s liquor code. Under the proposal, civic associations, city elected officials and state elected officials would be notified anytime a business applies for a liquor license in their districts. ••
