DETROIT (WXYZ) — Just as we were about to begin our interviews with members of the North Toledo Block Club, a driver went into oncoming traffic to speed around a semi-truck that was stopping on Clark Avenue at Toledo Street in Southwest Detroit. And that the speeding driver failed to stop at the stop sign as they continued down Clark Avenue.
And people living nearby say it's just one of the issues they're having with reckless drivers that are not just causing headaches, but real property damage.
"We're at the absolute threshold from being able to absorb what we can as a community," said Carolyn Catlos, Vice President of the North Toledo Block Club. "And I hear neighbors talking about moving if they can."
Catlos recently reached out to 7 News Detroit after seeing my recent report on the hit-and-run driver that destroyed part of Gloria Martinez's porch.
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"They run the stop signs," Martinez told me, especially frustrated because she and her husband, who is currently unable to work, can't afford to fix the damage. "This is like a freeway for people. We're always scared something is going to happen."
Catlos said she and her neighbors have been trying to get the city's attention so that measures can be taken to slow traffic or reduce reckless driving.
"It's a very long straightaway. It drops off into an industrial area, and I think people feel they're not being seen as much. They don't view it as a neighborhood. They see it as this in-between zone," Catlos said. "I think there's less guilt around it and, like, I won't get caught."
"Adding to the problem, the heavy truck traffic is so loud and causes their homes to vibrate," said Raquel Garcia, President of the North Toledo Block Club.
Garcia and Catlos said the city has shot down the idea of speed bumps in the area so they're hoping they will install curb extensions, raised crosswalks, and even surveillance cameras to capture the license plates of drivers who repeatedly run stop signs and speed.
"I think that's how you retain residents," Garcia said. "We're not flipping houses. These are our houses and this is why we're fighting to stay here."
Ron Brundidge, Detroit's Department of Public Works Director sent the following statement to 7 News Detroit:
City of Detroit DPW Traffic Engineering Division is aware of the concerns raised by residents at, or near the intersection of Toledo and Clark. Requested speed humps are not an option because both streets are classified as major roads and have existing bus routes. We are currently reviewing options to make this intersection safer. Once this review is completed, and the optimum intervention is determined, we will share with the residents before implementing. In the meantime, we are working with the Detroit Police Department to increase enforcement efforts against speeding.
Catlos said they're desperate for the city to take some sort of action.
She said, "I have lived a lot of places and I have never experienced something like this and it breaks my heart."
