Keizer police: 56 vehicle–pedestrian crash reports since 2023, officer says River Road a focal point

Officer Powell presented the committee with a review of traffic reports dating back to 2023 and said there were 56 vehicle–pedestrian-titled crashes recorded over the roughly three-year period, averaging about 2–2.5 such reports per month.

"Of those 56 that I found, there were only 12 where the driver of the vehicle was the one clearly found at fault," Officer Powell said, adding that many incidents involved pedestrians or bicyclists who were illegally in the roadway, bicycles riding the wrong way, or people standing in the center turn lane before crossing. Powell said several crashes occurred at driveway entrances where sidewalks are set back and drivers' sightlines are limited.

Committee members noted that River Road has the bulk of the injury accidents and discussed potential engineering controls, including limiting new driveway openings and considering more crosswalks in areas of increased development. One member urged that planning consider restrictions on new driveways to reduce conflict points on River Road.

Members also discussed a prior city council review of lowering residential speed limits to 20 mph; staff reported the council declined to pursue a citywide reduction due to cost considerations. Committee members suggested exploring alternative speed-reduction methods and including these topics at a June joint work session with the council.

Officer Powell said the department recently received updated traffic data collection equipment under an ODOT speed grant and will refresh speed surveys on complaint-driven streets before sharing results with neighborhood associations.

Next steps: staff will gather neighborhood input, the committee will prepare talking points for the June work session, and police will complete updated speed surveys for targeted streets and report back when data is available.