Back on this blog post, I featured an article from October 1966 that described the mind-numbing traffic jams that had become routine at that intersection, often resulting in a delay of 15 to 30 minutes.
Of course, the same bridge – known as the 49th Street bridge – was removed in the fall of 2015 in an effort to improve traffic flow.
Two and a half years later, I remain unconvinced that it was a good idea. It seems more frustrating than ever to go to Midway Mall (or Elyria, for that matter) via Route 57 with traffic lights seemingly every few hundred feet. The result? I tend to avoid that whole interchange – the exact opposite of what was supposed to happen when the improvements were completed.
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| A wavy Google Maps view of roughly the same area today |
It's funny, back in the day my non-Elyria friends used to say they hated going to Midway Mall because it was so confusing to get there from I-90 (in the pre-GPS era). Of course, these days they don't go to Midway Mall because there's nothing there. :-/ For myself, when I lived in Elyria I used to take West River Rd home to avoid the maze of left turns that was the 49th St bridge.
ReplyDeleteHi Bryan!
ReplyDeleteYou make a good point that sometimes the 'old way' with the bridge wasn't always that great with all those turns. I guess I was just used to it after all those decades. But I do hate all those new traffic lights on 57.
One would think that with all the property consuming "Midway Mall" that the easiest fix would be to move the people but not the cars. If they offered ample parking on either side of 57 and had people movers to get the back an forth from their car to the stores traffic would be less of a issue. Instead you have you having parking spots that have never been used taking up what could have been valuable retail space. I don't think anyone is thinking that place through. It could be a gold mine if they could attract shoppers from the east, west and south
ReplyDeleteIt is a terrific location, always has been with SR2, I-90 and the Turnpike right there. But it remains to be seen if it will be redeveloped into another Crocker Park-type shopping experience, or if the longtime rumors are true that it will eventually be converted into a healthcare complex.
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised the Journal even had 44-pages back then?
ReplyDelete