Nearby homeowners express frustrations with Elkhart drivers going wrong way down one-way street
ELKHART, Ind. -- A construction project in Elkhart is causing some confusion.
A section of Bristol Street is now a one-way due to road work, which is causing some drivers to unintentionally go the wrong way down the street.
Drivers attempt to continue down Bristol Street, despite the temporary one-way signs.
"Going the wrong way! They do that all the time; I'm waiting on a head on collision. I don't want to see one but yeah, they go all the time the wrong way, they move the barricades," said Elkhart resident, Dianne Barnes.
The barricades she's referring to sitting just past where the one way starts, at the entrance to the Glenwood Park neighborhood.
Homeowners who live there tell ABC57 they are seeing people go the wrong way down the one-way is a frequent occurrence.
"I saw one woman drive up on the right-hand side and she just looked at that and said well I'll just back up so she backed up, and went on the left-hand side. Both of them were blocked by the roadblocks, and she stopped her car, got out of her car, pulled the roadblock and then she drove through and then she put it back again and then went on her way," said Loren Louiseal, an Elkhart resident.
"It's frustrating but it's also very scary, you never know, especially at nighttime, if you're going the right way sometimes so it's definitely a safety hazard," said Lynne Miller, Elkhart resident.
ABC57 spoke with Elkhart's Director of Public Works, who says there has been some improvement after the city put out a press release last Tuesday.
"At the start of any construction project, there's concerns with the traffic control and the protections we put up for the construction workers, and often a little bit of confusion. Initially, it led to some concerns on Bristol Street, but after addressing some of those concerns, the press release we put out, we've heard that things are improved significantly in that area," said Jeff Schaffer, Elkhart Public Works Director.