Riverside council votes to remove HAWK crosswalk signal at Madison and Emerald and repay up to $217,991 grant

The Riverside City Council voted Oct. 20 to remove the pedestrian-activated HAWK signal where Madison Street meets Emerald Street and put stop signs back on every approach.

The decision means the city will pay back up to $217,991 in federal safety grant money to Caltrans.

Councilmember Mill moved for the change and Councilmember Conder seconded it. It passed with Councilmember Cervantes absent, according to draft minutes that are awaiting council approval. The item drew four public speakers.

The motion also approved spending $264,961 from the Measure A fund. A Public Works report says that covers the grant repayment plus an estimated $46,970 to convert the intersection.

Staff had offered a second choice: keep the signal, keep adjusting signs, striping and timing as needed, and bring new traffic studies to the council in two years. The council did not choose that option.

How the signal got there

HAWK stands for High-Intensity Activated Crosswalk. The city won a federal Highway Safety Improvement Program grant in 2018 to swap the stop signs for the signal after pedestrians were hurt in collisions there, the report says.

The signal went in during May 2023. Stop signs had controlled the intersection for roughly 10 years before that.

The report says residents supported the signal at first but later complained that drivers hesitated at the crossing, which has offset side streets and one crosswalk in the middle. Residents tied that to the layout and to unfamiliarity with how HAWK signals operate, it says.

The Casa Blanca Community Action Group asked in a letter for the stop signs to return. The letter says the system "is confusing to use and results in numerous close calls."

The city's Transportation Board voted 6-2 in December 2025 for a 12-month pilot that would have banned through traffic and left turns from the east and west approaches. In January the council asked staff to come back after more outreach to the community.

What the numbers showed

Public Works counted four reported collisions there in the three years before the signal was installed and none in the three years after.

An August 2026 study found 81% of vehicles came to a full stop for pedestrians, while 19% went ahead on a flashing red, often after the person on foot had already crossed. Observers recorded no near-misses.

Traffic counts show the intersection does not meet the volume thresholds for a signal, an all-way stop or a HAWK, the report says. Staff wrote that putting stop signs back would still be appropriate given the intersection's history.

The repayment could end up smaller. The signal equipment itself cost $177,991, and Caltrans has asked the city to document that figure, according to the report.

Public Works also plans to reuse the existing poles, mast arms and overhead signs to build what the report calls an "enhanced all-way stop."