Community Questions & Feedback on Maryland Avenue Trial
Intersections
Why did the signal timing change at the intersection of Maryland Avenue and southbound 35E? Why was the flashing yellow left turn removed?
The signal changes were made to reduce the potential for left-turn crashes at the intersection. The dual left-turn lanes and large volume of eastbound traffic during peak periods created a significant safety concern.
Turning onto and off of Maryland Avenue is more difficult now. What can be done?
An increase in delays for side street traffic turning onto Maryland Avenue can be expected from the three-lane configuration, particularly during peak periods. Traffic signals at Arkwright Street, Edgerton Street and Payne Avenue remain in place to provide more controlled access to Maryland Avenue.
Can you add a left turn arrow and signal phase at the intersection with Edgerton Street?
Public Works has studied adding left-turn signals to the light at this intersection and plans to add them during a planned signal replacement within the next five years.
Why isn’t there an all-red signal phase to the Payne Avenue signals for pedestrians?
Creating an all-red pedestrian phase at the signal would create significant vehicle delays during peak traffic periods.
I’d like to see more protected crossings or painted crosswalks and signage at unsignalized intersections.
Ramsey County follows City of Saint Paul policies for county roads located within the city. The city’s policy is to not install crosswalks at locations that could present an increased safety risk to pedestrians without providing adequate safety features.
There are currently no plans to add additional marked crossings at unsignalized intersections due to:
- Poor sign distance of vehicles coming over the hill which cannot be easily fixed.
- Low pedestrian counts at these intersections before and during the trial.
- Proximity of the safer marked crossings at Arkwright, Desoto and Edgerton streets.
Merging
The western merge is unclear.
Based on community feedback, additional merge signing and pavement marking arrows have been installed in advance of the eastbound merge condition.
Why isn’t there a right-turn only lane at Arkwright Street for eastbound traffic? Why can’t the merge happen further down the road?
The location of the merge was determined by extensive traffic modeling. Models showed that removing the second eastbound lane at or west of Arkwright Street produced significant backups onto the I-35E ramps.
Parking, bike lanes and passing
Can on-street parking be added between Edgerton Street and Greenbrier Street?
There are no plans to add on-street parking at this time. The county and City of Saint Paul have studied the possibility of using extra shoulder space to create parking and determined it would only be feasible to create a limited number of parking stalls.
Can bike lanes be added on Maryland Avenue?
Maryland Avenue is currently not wide enough to install bike lanes that meet safety guidelines.
Adding bike lanes would require widening the road and converting boulevard space to pavement. At this time, Maryland Avenue is not designated as a future bike facility in the City of Saint Paul’s Bicycle Plan.
The center turn lane is being used for passing.
Ramsey County has communicated the need for enforcement with Saint Paul Police.