City Council member pushes for safer Greenway Trail crossing on East Jefferson Street

A Plymouth City Councilman is renewing his push for safety improvements at the Greenway Trail crossing on East Jefferson Street, and this time he's getting some traction.

During Monday evening's Board of Public Works and Safety meeting, Councilman Dave Morrow raised concerns about the trail crossing near the Coffee Lodge, noting there is no defined crosswalk and no pedestrian signal at one of the city's busier stretches of road. Morrow said he has brought the issue to the board a couple of times over the past few years, but believes the time for action has come.

"Jefferson Street is a very busy street, especially at certain times of the day," Morrow said, pointing to the lack of infrastructure to protect pedestrians attempting to cross.

To illustrate what a safer crossing could look like, Morrow cited the pedestrian-activated signal on Plymouth Goshen Trail at the Greenway extension leading to Price's Memorial Pond. He said he personally observed vehicles stopping to allow walkers to cross when the light was triggered — a model he believes should be replicated on East Jefferson Street. Morrow recommended a similarly defined crosswalk with a pedestrian-activated light and proposed including the project in the 2027 city budget.

Mayor Listenberger confirmed that the Complete Streets Committee has been actively discussing Jefferson Street and the trail crossing. City Engineer Dan Sellers, also a member of that committee, said the group is exploring the possibility of slightly relocating the trail crossing and making modest adjustments to the intersection design. Sellers agreed that improvements are needed.

Councilwoman Shiloh Milner asked whether temporary pavement markings could be placed on East Jefferson Street in the near future to alert drivers to the possibility of pedestrians at the crossing. Mayor Listenberger said something temporary may be feasible yet this year, though Sellers noted it would depend on whether the Plymouth Street Department has sufficient funding in its current budget — and that an additional appropriation may be needed to make it happen in 2026.

Looking further ahead, Mayor Listenberger said the long-term vision is a full improvement of the entire stretch of Jefferson Street from the east city limits to the west city limits, targeted for 2032 or 2033. In the meantime, the mayor agreed to include funds in the 2027 budget to establish a safe, designated trail crossing on East Jefferson Street.