Resident urges protected bike lanes and sidewalks on Pearl Street after Walkable Nacogdoches walk

Resident Levi Stovall told the council he participated in a Walkable Nacogdoches community walk on Pearl Street and urged the city to pursue measures that would improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists.

"Based on the walk, Pearl Street would be a great place for protected bike lanes and sidewalks... Walking and cycling are relatively low cost and accessible compared with motor travel, but they can be dangerous if roads are designed with only cars in mind," Stovall said. He added that one of the officers escorting the walk "stated that people are nearly struck on Pearl Street every night."

Stovall suggested relatively low-cost, faster-to-implement measures such as visually indicated crosswalks, lane striping and a lighted pedestrian signal at West Star and North Street—an intersection he said is under TxDOT jurisdiction but that the city can request improvements for.

He invited the council to participate in Walkable Nacogdoches' next walk, scheduled for April 11 at 5:30 p.m., which will focus on MLK Boulevard.

Council thanked Stovall for the presentation; staff later discussed sidewalks and pedestrian planning in the context of bond projects.