EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio — Yvonne Lauretta is an East Cleveland mother of three who is tired of worrying about the speeding and safety concerns she believes are a real hazard along a one-mile stretch of Euclid Avenue.
Lauretta told News 5 business owners along Euclid Avenue witnessed a Dec. 11 accident when a driver became confused and stopped at a new crosswalk on Euclid Avenue that has not yet been activated, causing a rear crash that sent her and her three children to the hospital.
Lauretta is wondering when the badly needed safety crosswalk lights, which have been installed and are covered in bags, will finally be up and running.
News 5 has followed through on a series of reports concerning Euclid Avenue traffic safety over the past several years.
We don’t just report the initial story—we follow through to its conclusion. Read and watch our previous reporting on this story below and see more stories that we've followed through on here.
“You have kids coming everyday from school, they’re coming home from school, cars are speeding up and down Euclid non-stop, they don’t have consideration for no one," Lauretta said. “The new crosswalks are still not operating, it’s a safety hazard for kids and they should have had this working a long time ago. The fact that it’s up there and it’s not working it’s just up there, that’s a problem and a safety hazard."
East Cleveland barbershop operator and Black on Black Crime Inc. leader Art McKoy told News 5 he also wonders when the crosswalks will be activated.
McKoy told News 5 it's a situation that reminds him of the tragic Dec. 2019 car-pedestrian accidentwhich claimed the life of 36-year-old Terra Nolden as she attempted to cross a busy Euclid Avenue at an intersection where the traffic light had been taken down due to an on-going street project.
McKoy confirmed the traffic light near the intersection of Shaw Avenue was restored after the fatal accident.
McKoy also showed News 5 that all of the speed limit signs along that busy stretch of Euclid Avenue have been taken down, which he believes is also a safety issue.
“Whoever is taking care of this roadway, it’s a shame on them because they have forgotten about the people, the residents and the businesses of this area," McKoy said. "They didn’t put on no 25 MPH, 20 MPH, 35 MPH, nothing. If you go all the way down this strip, you will see no speed limit signs."
News 5 contacted the City of East Cleveland and the Ohio Department of Transportation about the safety concerns, and ODOT responded immediately. ODOT pledged to look into the situation and said delays in activating the new crosswalks were partly caused by the equipment's electric power supply still not being completed to all of the lights.
Meanwhile, Mckoy hopes Euclid Avenue safety improvements will be made soon.
“You’ve got this beautiful library, which children and mothers and all the people going back and forth and they have to run and run for their lives," McKoy said. “They forgot about the residents, they forgot about the children, they forgot about the library, they forgot about the businesses, but we’re going to hold them accountable.”
News 5 will follow through on this developing story.
