Drivers Urged to “Slow their Roll” on East 13th and 14th Avenues
Published on October 28, 2022
DENVER – In response to recent crashes, complaints from residents about speeding, and requests from the District 5 Council Office to address traffic issues along E. 13th and E. 14th Avenues between Colorado Boulevard and Yosemite Street, Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure has placed six (6) electronic message boards along these corridors (three on each road) to draw people’s attention to the speeds they are driving and to encourage people to slow down. The boards display a Halloween-themed message currently that will be updated next week and changed periodically the next few weeks.
They are an interim measure until other safety improvements, which are scheduled to be implemented along these corridors to slow drivers down, can be constructed. DOTI has already changed the light timing along these corridors to help address speeding concerns. The lights are timed to move drivers safely and efficiently at the speed limits that are posted. Going outside posted speeds is inefficient, as it puts the speeding vehicle outside of the “platoon” of cars that’s generally being paced to reach the lights on the green.
The message boards will be supplemented by regular Denver Police Department speed enforcement activities. There are also four pole-mounted driver feedback signs installed on E. 13th and E. 14th Avenues that indicate how fast people are driving to raise driver awareness of their speeds.
“I’m grateful to DOTI and DPD for taking the concerns voiced by my office, and hundreds of District 5 residents, seriously,” said Denver City Councilwoman Amanda Sawyer. “Traffic safety along these roads is an issue that has existed in Denver for decades and has only gotten worse over time. I know it took a lot of coordination for DOTI to implement this large-scale effort, but the results are worth it.”
Additional safety enhancements planned for the corridors include improvements at 21 intersections along E. 13th and E. 14th Avenues between Broadway and Yosemite. DOTI will be adding paint and posts to these intersections to shorten pedestrian crossing distances, which is anticipated to have a secondary effect of calming traffic, including slowing vehicle turning speeds from 13th and 14th Avenues onto neighborhood streets.
The 21 intersections receiving pedestrian crossing improvements are:
- On E. 13th Avenue (12 intersections): Grant Street, Logan Street, Pennsylvania Street, Pearl Street, Washington Street, Gilpin Street, Williams Street, High Street, Cherry Street, Krameria Street, Uinta Street, Verbena Street
- On E. 14th Avenue (9 intersections): Gilpin Street, Williams Street, High Street, Josephine Street, Colorado Blvd, Cherry Street, Krameria Street, Uinta Street, Verbena Street
DOTI also recently made safety improvements at 13th and Syracuse, installing larger signal heads on the side-mounted traffic signals and adding a second overhead signal on the westbound approach to the intersection. This intersection was the site of a fatal crash in August; another fatal crash occurred at Syracuse and 14th Avenue in April.