Baltimore, MD

The Project

Three intersections adjacent to Johnston Square Elementary school were identified by neighborhood residents to receive traffic calming art to combat vehicle speeds recorded as high as 85 MPH during school hours. The project began with the Johnston Square 2020 Vision Plan, a resident-led initiative to support safety for pedestrians of all ages and abilities. The design for the Bee Safe Art Crosswalks came together through community design workshops, where neighborhood residents worked with the design team to create the flower and bee pattern representing the neighborhood and to decide the color combinations for each intersection. Through the enhancement of sidewalks and the addition of curb bump-outs and new and shortened crosswalks, the redesigned space has already changed the way users move through it. Prior to installation, the area behind the school was used as a preferred access point for parents and students due to the location, despite high rates of speeding and missing crosswalks. After the safety interventions, the school felt comfortable adding a second dismissal location at the new mid-block crossing on Chase Street in addition to the overcrowded front entrance, allowing for a more efficient and safe pick-up process.

• Crossing distances were cut in half
• The percentage of drivers yielding to pedestrians with the right of way increased from 37% to 78%

How Asphalt Art Makes This Baltimore Community Safer

Use the slider to see the transformation

Best Practice Highlight: Building a shareable resource

At its core, this project is rooted in data and community engagement through the partnership between the Made You Look initiative and ReBuild Johnston Square Neighborhood Organization. Made You Look was conceived by Maryland Institute College of Art graduate students, Vilde Uset and Quinton Batts, who promoted artful safety interventions as a way to combat the high rates of Baltimore crashes. They oversee projects across the city and created an Art in the Right of Way Toolkit, a guide for other communities to create their own artistic street redesigns. Alongside the guide, they created an implementation Toolbox that has equipment for installing asphalt art (such as paint trays, safety vests, and a pressure washer) that can be borrowed for free from a local library branch. ReBuild Johnston Square is an organization of community members dedicated to the improvement of the Johnston Square neighborhood. Through this partnership, the intersections surrounding the elementary school were prioritized to receive safety and placemaking enhancements. Extensive community engagement tools were used to identify what safety interventions were needed, develop the artwork, and implement the project.

Press

Crosswalk art slows cars in Johnston Square (Baltimore Fishbowl, October 4, 2022)

Going the distance with public space design (WYPR, May 17, 2022)

Volunteers Paint Crosswalks In East Baltimore To Keep Students Safe (CBS Baltimore, March 30, 2022)

Volunteers paint the streets of Johnston Square Elementary this weekend hoping to slow down drivers (WMAR, March 27, 2022)