Mount Prospect considers traffic changes in 2 neighborhoods

The Mount Prospect village board Tuesday considered changes to stop signs and speed limits in various sections of town in a review of the village's neighborhood traffic study.

The board did not vote on the changes but listened to a presentation and to comments from residents who live in the two zones under consideration in the central part of town.

The board is thinking about eliminating all yield signs and uniformly setting the residential speed limit at 25 mph. It's also planning to add some stop signs and take out others based on studies done by its engineering department and consulting firm KLOA Inc.

The village split the town into 18 zones. One of the two zones considered in the study, Zone Nine, is a triangular piece of property bordered by Rand and Central roads and Route 83. It has 33 intersections and consists of about seven miles of road. The other zone, Zone 15, is bordered by Northwest Highway, Mount Prospect and Golf roads and Route 83. It has 70 intersections and about 15 miles of road.

About a half-dozen residents at Tuesday's meeting who live on Emerson Street near Emerson Park asked that a four-way stop at Isabella Street be kept in place despite a plan recommendation to remove it.

Village officials said they'd take all comments under advisement. The earliest the board would vote on the proposal would be in two weeks at its next meeting.

When the traffic study was completed earlier this year, the village sent more than 2,500 letters to homes in the two zones. It also held open houses for the residents, said Matt Lawrie, project engineer.

Less than a year ago, the village completed four zones on the more western side of the village. Five other zones are now under engineering review.

The proposed changes of the neighborhood traffic study can be seen at the village's Web site, www.mountprospect.org.