MILWAUKEE — Story Hill residents are raising safety concerns after multiple crashes occurred in their neighborhood less than a week into the Milwaukee Brewers season. They are Brewers fans and are used to having more traffic during baseball games but not the additional traffic from I-94 construction.
On Brewers Opening Day, the Milwaukee Police Department said two pedestrians were hit on West Wisconsin Avenue and taken to the hospital with non-fatal injuries. The driver was arrested on suspicion of OWI.
Watch: Story Hill residents demand traffic safety changes after multiple crashes during Brewers opening week
MPD confirmed another crash happened Saturday night, after a Brewers game, on West Bluemound Road and North 54th Street when a car lost control and hit two parked vehicles.
Resident Tim Decker reached out to TMJ4 about the growing concerns.
"Story Hill needs some help… Considering all the people for Brewers games and all the detour traffic from 94 construction you would hope the dot or the public works department would have this issue already in place," Decker said.
"I'm really concerned about the traffic situation," Decker said. "It should be safer. What? Is it gonna take somebody to die? Two people got hit on opening day."
Paula Gallitz and her granddaughter, Penelope Weiss, have also noticed the extra traffic.
"Nobody seems to be taking this seriously," Gallitz said. "It was not a surprise to us. We said it straight out loud when we met with the DOT, someone will get hit, there will be an accident, and people will get hurt or die."
"It's very scary, because you never know what people are thinking while they're driving," Weiss said.
Residents are now calling for traffic calming measures on Bluemound, Wells, and Wisconsin, as well as more police presence on those streets during games. TMJ4 asked District 10 Alderwoman Sharlen Moore if those measures are being considered.
"We will be talking with MPD a little bit more to get a strategy on what happened during opening day. Just talking through what happened, what do we need to do differently? But we really want this to be driven by community and a team effort as well," said Alder Moore.
Moore said the Bluemound is a state highway, and the city would need permission from the state in order to add traffic calming measures.
"I want our residents to know that I'm listening, I understand the issues that are going on, and together, we can collectively work on it," said Alder Moore.
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation sent a statement regarding the traffic issues.
"There’s been 4 home games so far, but we’re already evaluating and discussing with our municipal partners, law enforcement, and the Milwaukee Brewers on potential improvements," the Wisconsin Department of Transportation said.
Residents hope action comes before a tragedy.
"I think the DOT, the county and the city need to figure out a way to help us get the dollars we need for the infrastructure to make this neighborhood safe for everyone," Gallitz said.
Fans heading to the game can visit brewers.com/Traffic for real-time traffic conditions, construction updates and route information.
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