To collect data to inform a long-term redesign of the roadway, Frazier Avenue on Chattanooga’s North Shore will have a new temporary traffic pattern every weekend until the end of December, the city announced Monday.
The speed limit along Frazier, a four-lane road with two lanes in either direction, will also permanently be reduced to 25 mph. Speed radars will be added along Frazier, and Chattanooga police will increase enforcement of speeding violations.
The city’s move to modify the street’s traffic pattern comes after a crash during Thanksgiving weekend that killed two people — Ana Posso Rodriguez, 41, and her son, Jonathan Devia, 1, of Jacksonville, Florida.
Randy Vega, the 44-year-old driver from Tampa, Florida, who crashed his minivan into Rodriguez and Devia as they were walking on the sidewalk, was booked into jail last week and faces charges including two counts of vehicular homicide assault, driving under the influence and reckless endangerment.
The crash happened at the foot of the city’s signature Walnut Street walking bridge, in a high-profile tourist area. The van also crashed into a gift shop storefront.