Residents driving through several intersections near downtown Chico will soon need to travel more cautiously.
Some of the city’s neighborhoods currently use two-way yield signs at intersections, but many will soon be replaced with stop signs.
The plan will cover 19 intersections around town. That includes 15 downtown near Chico State’s campus. Some others will also be converted in northeast Chico.
While yield signs can allow better flow of traffic, data shows they can sometimes create more dangerous traffic conditions than stop signs, said Wyatt West, public works traffic and engineering division project manager.
“That just comes from inattentiveness of people just accustomed to slowing down but not really taking that caution to really stop and take a look,” West said. “We know that there were higher incidences of collision. So for that reason alone, it kind of just makes sense.”
West said once the weather improves, work will start on installing the stop signs.
“We'll be waiting probably another couple weeks, but we should be complete by the end of April with all the locations,” West said.
The change comes after residents near Chico State’s campus voiced concern to public works staff during a nighttime walk event for the university in October.
Chico’s Internal Affairs Committee voted to take action at last week’s meeting. The agenda item said the current use of yield signs in the city could create confusion and increase risks, and that “converting the existing yield signs to stop signs will create a more predictable traffic environment.”
Installing the stop signs will cost the city around $12,000.
