Majority of citizens NOT in favor of changes to Roy Kidd Avenue

One of the reasons I do not like to go to Lexington is because I feel like I spend half my time waiting at traffic lights. For over 35 years and probably 15,000 times I have driven down Gordon Hill from my home to work and back, plus taking grandchildren to school. I feel like I have spent half my life waiting on the light to change, many times twice, at Gordon and Kentucky streets. Give the Dept. of Transportation credit, they have the lights timed properly to keep traffic moving from Kentucky to Main streets as best as it can be.

Don Estep is publisher of the News Journal.

Unfortunately, this situation could become worse because two city commissioners, Allison Moore and James Gambrel, and Mayor Suzie Razmus voted to follow the recommendations of the Kentucky Transportation Department to make a portion of Roy Kidd Avenue one-way. Commissioners Brandon Shepherd and John Baker voted against the proposal at a city commission meeting last Tuesday.

Mayor Razmus said she felt “morally obligated” to follow the recommendations of the KYTC because the person who made the recommendation deemed the intersection unsafe.

At the meeting Commissioner Shepherd revealed some interesting research he had done. He stated that in the last five years there have been only 20 accidents, or four per year on average, at this intersection. He said there are other intersections that have had much higher accident rates. He also presented a petition signed by 133 Corbin residents who do not support the change.

I have done a little research on my own and I have not found anybody, other than those three elected officials, who supports the change. I have talked to several people, looked at comments on both newspapers Web pages and on Facebook and I haven’t seen any support for the change. On the contrary, most everybody is against it.

But the question is why a transportation official would red flag an intersection with so few accidents. And how did this official come up with the idea that more parking was needed? Edward Jones is the only business on that block and they have their own parking. There are a couple of small empty offices located there and the Board of Education is on that block. So why?

The bigger question though is why the state will not agree to put a traffic light at that intersection if they feel safety is an issue? Pardon me, but I believe I know more about this situation. By having an office one block from the intersection for 35 years I am very aware of the situation. Speed is a factor that has not been dealt with in this area. At times it is like a drag race from First and Main streets to the top of Master Street hill. A traffic light would be a much better solution, although other than for speed control I don’t think a traffic light is necessary either.

More accidents may happen when 17 angular parking spots are added between Main and Depot Streets and six parallel parking spots added between Main and Kentucky streets.

As you are aware, backing out of these spots will increase the likelihood of accidents because the driver will back out into oncoming traffic. Add there is a blind spot that can occur and then the likelihood increases. There isn’t a sidewalk at the east location. That would require the drivers who park there to walk, that’s right, walk in the street into oncoming traffic to reach a sidewalk. Not good!

We have taken a drone picture of the area (look on our front page) for you to have a better understanding of the change. Notice the parking lot behind our News Journal office. It is half empty and it stays that way. This is evidence that additional parking is not needed in this area. And if this lot is not big enough now, then take up the Crepe Myrtles and other plants that were installed for beautification a few years ago and restore the parking that was taken away.

And of the most insane appeals ever for more parking, one came from the City Hall Apartments. Seems they are four spaces short of having enough parking for the tenants. But here’s the most unbelievable reason, they lease out four parking spaces to a business. I can’t believe what I just wrote!

To our state official who made the recommendation, thanks for your generous offer. It appears to be a gift, but in reality it is still taxpayer’s money at work. Why not be more generous and drive down what I call Washboard Avenue, better known as Kentucky Street. We could really use your help in getting it fixed. I hope it doesn’t take over 15 years to fix the street like it did at that pothole at Gordon and Kentucky streets.

Now back to accidents. I see accidents coming from traffic having to turn left at the underpass onto Depot St. in front of oncoming traffic that will have to switch from the left to right side of the one-way street. I hope it doesn’t cause an accident but I know it will cause traffic delays.

Many of the vehicles turning onto Depot Street will proceed south, but some will turn onto Gordon Street. With the increase in traffic on Gordon going west, the traffic coming down the hill going east will be wanting to turn left on Main Street and will be held up by the thru traffic and this is a heavily travelled road.

Who will this inconvenience? To name a few; those going to the post office, library, senior citizens center, football field, swimming pool, First Baptist Church and kindergarten, and those coming from the middle school, those going to the Trademart Shopping Center, plus many others.

I understand the mayor and city commissioners acting on advice from a state official, but this state officials is wrong. Dead wrong! She must not have taken into account all the inconveniences of making another street in Corbin one-way when a simple traffic light would have solved what she called a safety problem.

Personally I don’t agree that we have a problem there and I think I speak for the majority of the people when I say it is time to revisit this issue and stop the changes.