Anyone who has stopped at the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and Liberty Street can attest to the fact that many drivers are intimidated by four-way stops, while others should be.
And, anyone who regularly walks through that intersection can attest to the fact that not all drivers are familiar with the concept that pedestrians have the right of way at marked pedestrian crossings.
Even after more than two years without a traffic signal at that intersection, the situation hasn't improved.
One would think that with all of the planning, all of the millions spent on construction, there would have been an end-game included for one of the city's busiest intersections, certainly the busiest pedestrian crossing.
The City of Warren built a multi-level parking garage - the subject of considerable debate and consternation - to predominately serve employees in the downtown area north of Pennsylvania Avenue, mostly along Liberty and Hickory Streets. Now the traffic light that serves those commuters is gone, along with the attendant pedestrian crossing signals.
Streetscape, the lovely sculpting of sidewalks and redesign of parking areas, has provided us with a great place to while away sultry afternoons in the summer, but a commuting nightmare each weekday morning and afternoon.
We understood when it was thought the inconvenience and potential danger for pedestrians and drivers would be temporary.
Now, we are told, there won't be a traffic signal installed there in the coming year. The city just can't afford to rip up the sidewalk to install the equipment, something that should have been accommodated during the original construction.
Patience is growing thin, and with a major expansion of Northwest Savings underway, the prognosis is that patience will disappear all together.