Evanston Resident Wants Larger Print On Street Cleaning Signs; 'It's Impossible To Read At Any Distance'
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Armed with a tape measure, an Evanston resident is working to prove his point about street signs being too small to read, and with the help of CBS 2 Investigator Dorothy Tucker he is finally getting the attention of city leaders.
In Chicago, the permanent red and white street cleaning signs posted on many city streets measure 24 inches by 18 inches.
Evanston resident Allen Feuerstein thinks the street cleaning signs on his block are too small, because they measure only 18 inches by 12 inches – half the size of Chicago's signs in square inches.
The signs in Evanston also contain twice as much information about both street cleaning and snow routes, which Feuerstein says creates another problem.
"The 'No Parking Here To Corner' sign has a huge font where you can read it; but the street cleaning sign is about half the size, so it's impossible to read at any distance," he said.
Feuerstein measured the letters on Evanston's parking signs. Most of the letters on the 'No Parking Here To Corner' signs and two-hour parking signs are two to three inches tall, compared to the street cleaning signs where the biggest letters are only an inch tall.
Feuerstein pointed to another issue down the block, pointing out the street cleaning signs are posted at the ends of the block – too far apart if you ask him.
He said, if you park in the middle of the long block, you wouldn't be able to see any indication of street cleaning signs.
Feuerstein said another sign should be added. He also called for larger lettering, like on Chicago street cleaning signs, where most of the letters are 1.5 inches tall – more than 50 percent larger.
When CBS 2 showed photos of the Evanston and Chicago signs to Evanston assistant city manager Erika Storlie, she argued the community complained in the past there were too many parking signs.
"People couldn't understand them, so they were consolidated to be clearer," she said.
When asked whether she could understand complaints about the size of the lettering on the current signs, she walked away. Earlier she pretty much summed up her feelings about the issue.
"The city of Evanston faces a lot of issues, and at the present time this isn't at the top of the list," she said.
It might not be at the top of her list, but after CBS 2 started asking questions, the city manager who didn't respond to Feuerstein for months sent an email stating the city might discuss additional signs at its next meeting on July 8.