Click here to fill out a survey!
The Town of Bel Air has joined forces with the City of Aberdeen and City of Havre de Grace, using a $175,000 federal grant provided through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) program, to study how the three municipalities can make their streets safer for pedestrians, as well as bicycle riders, mass transit users and people with disabilities.
The Harford County communities are working with a consultant to conduct the studies, supported by public input, analysis of traffic and pedestrian counts, crash data and reviews of intersections that are considered problematic or unsafe.
Bel Air residents can give their input during a public workshop on Monday, February 12, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., in the Bel Air Armory at 37 N. Main Street. In case of inclement weather, the workshop will be rescheduled to Wednesday, February 21 – also from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. – in Bel Air Town Hall at 39 N. Hickory Avenue. Workshops are scheduled for Aberdeen and Havre de Grace, too.
People are also encouraged to provide feedback through a survey. It can be accessed by scanning the QR code on the workshop flyer or through the link at the top of this page.
Bel Air officials are employing a “zero deaths approach” in their initiative to improve pedestrian safety in the Town, Planning Director Kevin Small said during a January 30 work session with the members of the Board of Town Commissioners. The SS4A program provides grants to communities working towards reducing to zero the number of fatalities and serious injuries from crashes involving motorists and pedestrians or cyclists, according to Small.
He noted that Bel Air has been fortunate to have few fatal crashes involving pedestrians in recent years – some fatalities that have happened include a 78-year-old woman struck by a pickup truck while crossing South Bond Street at Courtland Street in November of 2017, as well as a 29-year-old man who was hit while crossing Route 24 at MacPhail Road in December of 2023.
Small said Bel Air officials can put the grant funds to use by studying “some of the more difficult intersections” in the Town that have issues such as poor visibility for pedestrians while crossing, a heavy volume of vehicle traffic, speeding drivers and other “operational issues.”
Nine intersections in Bel Air have been identified for study. They include:
- Office Street and Courtland Street at South Bond Street near the Circuit Court and District Court buildings (See Photo)
- Kenmore Road at South Main Street near Bel Air High School
- Ellendale Street at North Main Street near the Ma & Pa Heritage Trail entrance
- Moores Mill Road at North Hickory Avenue by the Del Plaza shopping center
- Pennsylvania Avenue at North Hickory near the Bel Air Library and the municipal parking garage
- Lee Way and North Hickory near Bel Air Elementary School, Saint Margaret Parish and Shamrock Park
- East Lee Street and Main Street near the Armory
- Gordon Street at the confluence of Bond and Main Streets near the Shop Rite supermarket and many other businesses
- MacPhail Road at South Main Street near Homestead Wakefield Elementary School
Bond Street between Courtland Street and Office Street was identified as a problematic area. The Harford County Courthouse is along the east side of Bond, between Courtland and Office, and the Mary E. W. Risteau District Court & Multi-Service Center is across the way at Bond and Thomas Street. The Risteau building parking lot is often used for community events that draw large numbers of people, such as the Bel Air Farmers’ Market and the Maryland State BBQ Bash. Police Chief Charles Moore described it, during the work session, as “a problem area that we need to look at.”
The planning phase of the pedestrian safety improvement project is expected to last through June, said Small. He told the Town Commissioners that they will need to make a public commitment and establish a timeline for reaching the goal of zero deaths and serious injuries. Small plans to apply to the USDOT by July for additional grant funds to implement recommendations in the consultant’s report, and safety fixes that the commissioners set as their priorities.
Commissioners Mary Chance and Steve Chizmar noted their own concerns about pedestrian safety, such as drivers who treat stop signs as only a suggestion, speeding and faded crosswalks that are not clearly visible to walkers.
Contact Media and Public Relations Specialist David Anderson at 410-688-3020 or danderson@belairmd.org.