Safety Improvements Being Added To Crystal Intersection | Local News

Work is being done to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists trying to cross Douglas Drive North (County Road 102) at 32nd Avenue North in Crystal. The intersection, which is currently marked with a standard crosswalk, will get a new system with push-button activated crossing lights that will flash to alert oncoming motorists. (Sun photo by Jason Jenkins)

Upgraded crossing system will be installed at 32nd Avenue and Douglas Drive North

Work is being done to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists trying to cross a busy road in Crystal.

According to Mark Ray, Crystal’s director of public works, the city for years has been advocating for the installation of pedestrian crossing lights at the intersection of 32nd Avenue North and Douglas Drive North (County Road 102).

The intersection is currently marked with a standard crosswalk but it’s located at the bottom of a hill which causes accelerating traffic from both directions. The crossing is also often busy with pedestrians and cyclists using Three Rivers Park District’s Bassett Creek Regional Trail.

“We’ve been talking about this since 2016 when the Bassett Creek Regional Trail was constructed through the city,” Ray said during the city council’s Oct. 3 meeting, noting the city’s interest in adding a higher level of pedestrian crossing warning signage at the intersection.

At the time, the county did not feel that such a system was warranted for the crossing, which kept things from moving forward, Ray said.

“This past summer, the county finally expressed support and approval for this project,” the public works director said.

The city recently received two quotes for the planned work, with the winning bid coming from Laketown Electric Corporation at an estimate of $38,000 for the project. The cost will be evenly split three ways between the city, Three Rivers Park District and Hennepin County. Long term, the system will be owned and operated by Hennepin County, with the city paying the electrical costs.

The new system will be push-button activated by a pedestrian or cyclist who is trying to cross Douglas Avenue North. Rectangular beacons will flash to alert oncoming motorists of the crossing persons.

The intersection has proven to be a dangerous area in the past. In March, a Hopkins High School track athlete named Jasmin Baresh was out for a run when she was struck by a motorist while crossing Douglas Drive North at 32nd Avenue North. The impact threw her 30 feet, fracturing her femur and causing a traumatic brain injury. Members of the Crystal Police Department were among the first responders to arrive at the scene.

“We got a 911 call about a person versus vehicle accident near the intersection,” Crystal Deputy Police Chief Brian Hubbard said earlier this year. “We got there and found Jasmin in very serious condition.”

After having surgery on her injuries and spending five days in intensive care, the student recovered at home while seeing speech therapists and doing occupational and physical therapy, moving from using a wheelchair to a walker to a cane in a matter of five weeks.

The city’s goal is to have all of the underground electrical work done this fall with the signal system arriving potentially in December, which would put the crossing system on track to be fully operational sometime this winter.

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