By Eric Curl
May 12, 2024 – Cloverdale Drive may be getting more than a couple of yellow stripes down the center as part of a new traffic calming initiative that will require an artist’s eye, rather than just an engineer’s.
The city of Savannah is inviting artists to submit proposals for an asphalt art installation meant to slow down motorists within the 1/3 of a mile section of the neighborhood road between Cynthia and Delano streets. Essentially a mural painted on the roadway, the street art would work in conjunction with speed humps currently in place.
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Such projects, including intersection murals, crosswalk art, and painted plazas or sidewalk extensions, have existed for years and are growing in popularity in communities across the world, according to a 2022 asphalt art safety study commissioned by Bloomberg Philanthropies.
This would be Savannah’s first such project, after Phillip Kalogitonas, Capital Projects Liaison, originated the idea during his time in the City Manager’s Emerging Leaders Program—an internal program designed to empower future leaders through training and mentoring, according to city spokesperson Joshua Peacock.
The location in Cloverdale was chosen because of the neighborhood’s ongoing concerns for pedestrian safety due to speeding motorists, but it could become an option for other communities if it is determined to effective, Peacock said in an email on Wednesday.
Though asphalt art projects frequently include specific roadway safety improvements, the art itself is often also intended to improve safety by increasing visibility of pedestrian spaces and crosswalks, promoting a more walkable public realm, and encouraging drivers to slow down and be more alert for pedestrians and cyclists, the most vulnerable users of the road, according to the Bloomberg study. The analysis reporting finding significantly improved safety performance across a variety of measures during periods when asphalt art was installed.
Proposals will be accepted by the city until May 21.
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