CLEVELAND (WJW) – There’s some encouraging news for a Cleveland woman whose house has been struck by vehicles multiple times, including a terrifying pickup truck crash caught on video last fall.
The Ohio Department of Transportation and the City of Cleveland have been working together to make the intersection in front of several homes, including hers, safer.
Sherry Heart, 60, says she can remember cars crashing into and in front of the home she grew up in on Cleveland’s west side since she was 15-years old.
“That’s 44 guardrails, four porches and three cars wrecked in the backyard,” Heart said.
Heart says since 1978, cars have been plowing into her home and yard as drivers exit I-90 eastbound onto West Boulevard.
“If you look at the ramp, we’re like right in front of it. We’re more worried about if they hit our house and it catches on fire, you know, what are we going to do?” she said.
Last November, Heart’s security camera captured video of a pickup truck barreling through the intersection, a guardrail and demolishing her front porch.
Four months later, she is still waiting for the stone to be delivered to fix the porch.
“I was hoping there was some kind of barrier up first before I rebuild this porch again,” Heart said.
Last week, ODOT installed signs and flashing lights on the West Boulevard exit ramp to make drivers more aware of the upcoming traffic signal.
“In addition to that, we are currently in design of a project to add some raised curbs to the bottom of the ramp and on West Boulevard to really deter vehicles coming off I-90 going through the intersection and across it,” said Brent Kovacs, public information officer for ODOT District 12.
Heart showed FOX 8 a potential redesign of the intersection, although ODOT says no final layout has been chosen.
“Put the triangle on the actual ramp, then instead of straight on, it’ll be more at an angle,” she said.
“A raised curb and it’s going to be high enough that if a motorist hits this at a high rate of speed, it’s going to stop them. If they get past the first one, there’s also going to be a second one they would have to get past before hitting a home,” said Kovacs.
The city is working with the state to improve the intersection.
Sherry says her neighbors’ homes have been damaged multiple times as well.
In the meantime, she says there have been nine incidents since the pickup slammed into her house in November, including a police chase that went through her yard and a car sliding through the intersection and into the newly-installed guardrail.
“If I get hit right now, I’m through, you know? This house wouldn’t make it.108-year-old home. We don’t want to move, but you know, we also are sort of living terror here,” Heart said.
Heart says the city also plans to change the timing of the traffic signal to improve safety.
ODOT officials say they applied for funding for the project this week and over the next couple of weeks, crews will be out doing surveys.
They say improving the ramp is a priority and hope to at least start on reconfiguring the intersection by the end of the year.