Reynolda Road crossing to enhance pedestrian safety

August 13, 2020

Construction is underway on a new Reynolda Road crossing, with expectations to wrap up at the end of August. A crosswalk and 10-foot wide landscaped median will be installed just north of Graylyn Court, which serves as an entry to both the Graylyn Estate and Reynolda House Museum of American Art. The median will provide pedestrian refuge and a dedicated left-turn lane onto the Reynolda House grounds. It will be mirrored by a second median, forming a left turn lane toward Graylyn. The crossing will connect users to wide gravel paths on either side of the road, leading to the local landmarks. Two solar-powered rapid flash beacons will use thermal detection and manual push buttons to alert drivers and cyclists to pedestrian crossings.

The Reynolda Road crossing is the latest in a series of safety improvements resulting from recommendations in the 2014 Bicycle, Pedestrian and Transit study. Guided by a stakeholder advisory group with representation from Wake Forest, the community and government entities, the report included infrastructure and policy recommendations to improve active transportation and transit choices between the Reynolda Campus and surrounding neighborhoods.

Neighbors and community stakeholders were invited to provide additional feedback about the Reynolda Road project last fall.  “Stakeholder engagement is important to clearly understand the community’s support for the initiative and to learn from the end-users’ observations and experiences to improve the proposed design solutions,” said Rosalba Ledezma, senior advisor for facilities and campus services. “Support for the project and appreciation for the initiative to improve pedestrian safety were the clear messages received.”

The Polo Road pedestrian crossing zone is another safety improvement to come out of the advisory group’s 2014 report. Read more about Reynolda Road safety improvements on the Office of Sustainability website.