Lower Merion and Narberth are seeking residents’ input as they embark on an effort to make Montgomery Avenue safer for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians.
At a meeting Feb. 3, officials from the township and the borough laid out long-standing safety issues on Montgomery Avenue and took feedback from attendees, many of whom said they no longer feel safe walking and driving along one of the Main Line’s busiest arteries.
The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded Lower Merion and Narberth $340,540 to study a seven-mile stretch of Montgomery Avenue, from Spring Mill Road to City Avenue, through the federal Safe Streets and Roads for All program. The program awards funds to municipalities working to limit roadway deaths and serious injuries. The study will inform safety improvements at 35 intersections on that stretch of Montgomery Avenue.
Officials cited a long list of safety issues on Montgomery Avenue, from out-of-date pedestrian push buttons, sidewalk curb ramps, and crosswalk lighting to regular speeding and weaving by drivers. Without proper turn lanes and signals, drivers making left turns on Montgomery Avenue often slow traffic and can endanger pedestrians and other motorists, township representatives added.
The traffic-calming effort comes at the heels of Lower Merion’s Comprehensive Safety Action Plan, which was published in 2025. The plan calls for eliminating all roadway fatalities and serious injuries in Lower Merion, with a goal of achieving a 50% reduction by 2030. Last summer, township commissioners approved a plan to install automated red-light enforcement cameras at four intersections, beginning with the intersection of Lancaster Avenue and Remington Road.
Unlike previous traffic studies that focused on individual intersections, this project will take a more comprehensive approach, officials said.
Between 2020 and 2024, there were 532 reportable crashes on Montgomery Avenue between Spring Mill Road and City Avenue. A reportable crash is defined as a crash resulting in an injury or vehicle damage serious enough to require towing. Around 2.5% of such crashes involved a serious injury. Just over half involved a minor injury, and the rest, around 46%, involved property damage only. In the same time frame, there were 920 minor crashes, or incidents with no injury and no need for towing.
In total, 3,767 crashes were reported in Lower Merion at-large between 2019 and 2023. In that time frame, Lower Merion Township accounted for 8% of crashes with a fatality or serious injury within Montgomery County.
Pennsylvania is the only state in the country where local police officers are prohibited from using radar for speed enforcement, said Andy Block, Lower Merion’s police superintendent, making it difficult for his department to enforce speed limits.
At the meeting, residents told stories of their own crashes and near-misses on Montgomery Avenue.
Kim Beam, a social worker at Bryn Mawr Hospital, used to walk to work along Montgomery Avenue every day before she was nearly hit by a car a few weeks ago.
“I had an event which would have made me one of your fatalities,” Beam said, describing her walk to work as poorly lit, contributing to dangerous, and almost deadly, conditions for pedestrians like herself.
Residents of Lower Merion and Narberth were encouraged to complete a survey that will inform officials as they develop a preliminary set of safety recommendations. A public meeting will be held once the recommendations are developed to gather additional feedback.
Residents can fill out the survey online via a link from www.lowermerion.org or print it out and drop it off at Narberth or Lower Merion’s municipal buildings. Completed forms can also be mailed to Brandon Ford, Assistant Township Manager, Lower Merion Township, 75 E. Lancaster Ave., Ardmore, Pa. 19003.
dsagner@inquirer.com
denalisagner