Motorists and pedestrians in Minocqua Wednesday will be seeing a new pedestrian crossing device called a "HAWK".
The High-Intensity Activated Cross-Walk has been installed south of Rogers Drive-U.S. 51 intersection near Minocqua Furniture. D.O.T. engineer Joanna Bush says as a pedestrian or bicyclist touches an activation button, a different lighting system begins for motorists...
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"....once the pedestrian pushes the button, the vehicular traffic will see a flashing yellow ball. This means the beacon has been activated. The flashing yellow is followed by a flashing yellow, which means the drivers should stop if safely able to do so, and then a solid red. Once the vehicular traffic has stopped, and the solid red comes on, the pedestrians will see a "walk" indication...."
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After the pedestrian clears the intersection, the red indications for the motorists will "wig-wag" back and forth alerting them the pedestrian or bicyclists has safely crossed and they can proceed on. The signal stays dark until activated by a person crossing the street.
The crossing is designed to be placed in high-traffic areas that don't have a stop sign, mainly in mid-block areas. The DOT is placing the new signal in several Wisconsin communities that have high-traffic areas.
