MISSOULA — Crossing the street in Missoula can be intimidating, especially at crosswalks that aren't connected to an intersection with lights such as the crossing on Russell Street by the fairgrounds and the YMCA. But improvements are coming.
Russell Street is one of Missoula's main roads, connecting Broadway to Brooks Street and serving as an alternative to Reserve Street. It's one of Missoula's busiest roads.
"So that's first and foremost why the improvements are needed for safety,” said City of Missoula surface engineer Kevin Slovarp.
The City of Missoula is planning to improve the pedestrian crossing near the Missoula County Fairgrounds by connecting the current trail and placing barriers to prevent parking around the crossing. A median will also be added to the center of the road along with a flashing beacon.
“And then other improvements are some improvements to the driveway that help serve the fairgrounds and the YMCA and then put in a new — basically install a new bus stop — also just north of that driveway and just north of the pedestrian and bicycle crossing. Stormwater improvements, so there's, yeah, there's a lot of things that go into the project and it's just in a very small footprint,” explained Slovarp.
The improvements are also welcomed by the fairgrounds, which sees a lot of traffic through the area during some of their events.
“We're looking forward to some improvements there where people can really see that this is a designated pedestrian crossing as we add more events like the fair and the music festival coming up July 4th,” said Missoula County Fairgrounds events and operations manager Billie Brown.
Funding for the project comes largely from the state gas tax fund, federal grants and Missoula County. It is expected to have a total cost of around $350,000 when complete.
A contractor for the project is currently being lined up so construction can be expected in the near future.
