The Paducah City Commission is in the process of hiring an engineering firm to study the conversion of Broadway and Jefferson streets back to two-way traffic.
If approved, HDR Engineering will begin studying the two streets for conversion between Fountain Avenue and Water Street.
City of Paducah planning director Steve Ervin says if the project moves forward, conversion will include removing some traffic signals and replacing them with stop signs.
“I believe there’s nine of them," Ervin said. "Doing warrant studies on each one of those signals to see if they’re needed, necessary, and then the possibility of removal of those signals in the future.”
He says bike lanes will also be added to Broadway and Jefferson as part of the plan.
“We want to have a vibrant downtown where people, they stop at a stop sign, they look at businesses, they look at pedestrians," Ervin said. "There’s mobility and bicycle movement downtown, so all this is a coordinated effort.”
Ervin said the bike lanes will eventually connect to the Greenway Trail and into Noble Park for a 9-mile bike loop.
Commissioners will vote on an ordinance September 6 approving the $63,000 contract with HDR. Ervin says there’s no timetable yet on when the conversion could actually begin or be completed. The plan was suggested by "Walkable City" author Jeff Speck when he visited in 2014.
