Author: SPY

Two vehicle accidents minutes apart

Emergency personnel were kept busy this morning with two separate vehicle accidents that occurred within several minutes of each other. The first accident, reported just before 6:30 a.m., occurred near the intersection of North Third and Avenue G. A 2005 Toyota Camry LE traveling southeast on North Third crossed the center line and hit a parked Mini Cooper head-on, pushing it into another parked Mini Cooper. The impact pushed both parked cars partially onto the sidewalk.

A second accident was reported just after 6:30 a.m., in which a white Volkswagen Jetta TDI traveling east on Route 30, just beyond the Route 441 overpass, broke through the end of a guard rail near the Columbia exit. The vehicle then slid down an embankment and came to rest on its side near the Columbia Visitors Center parking lot. The occupant, who was initially trapped, was freed from the vehicle and found to be uninjured.

About Town

Some photos from around town today . . .
Some say the town is going to the dogs . . .

But actually it may be going to the arts. These paintings were being unloaded at The Arts @ Hinkle’s along Locust Street this afternoon . . .

Meanwhile, at Front and Walnut . . .

Things were malfunctioning again. The railroad barricades activated randomly and interfered with the traffic signals, causing them to stay red in both directions simultaneously for about 30 seconds at a time.  A pedestrian warned motorists of the malfunctions and helped direct traffic through the intersection.  Finally, a Norfolk Southern employee arrived and fixed the glitch.
And finally, out along 462 just beyond the Columbia Plaza (heading east): This van, which is still parked along the highway, was sideswiped by another vehicle last night at about 3:30 a.m., according to a witness who lives nearby. 
The takeaway is: Don’t park along the highway.

$4.4M in transit grants will boost trails, pedestrian-friendly projects, except in Columbia

Submissions that didn’t get money included a Northwest River Trail connection and Third Street improvement projects in Columbia Borough.

More bugs on 441

There were more problems with the traffic signals and railroad barricades at Front and Walnut this afternoon at about four o’clock. A Norfolk Southern worker reset the barricades, but as of this posting, the traffic signals are still not functioning properly. The lights on Front Street (Route 441) are flashing yellow, while those on Walnut Street are flashing red.

The disappearing stop sign mystery solved – sort of

As reported previously on this site, the stop sign on Route 441 South at the Locust Street intersection was removed to facilitate traffic flow when the new bypass opened last week. Then on Monday, a stop sign reappeared at this intersection, only to disappear again the next day.

Currently, drivers stopped at the bottom of Locust Street are having trouble seeing traffic on 441 South due to the setback of the stop sign; the building beside the sign obscures the view. Borough officials are aware of the problem.

According to a borough representative, PennDOT will meet with the borough next week to hammer out a solution for this troublesome intersection.

ADA to nowhere now goes somewhere

The ADA access near the intersection of Front and Walnut is apparently now complete. This access point is part of the recent Route 441 bypass project. Previously, this ADA terminated at the rear egress. In other words, it didn’t go anywhere.

 Now, however, asphalt has been applied, as shown above, creating a wheelchair accessible walkway running parallel to the railroad tracks, allowing entrance to Columbia River Park.

Here’s a view from across the street at the Eastern Drillers building (the old railroad station).