88-year-old educates Wellsville Village Board on Main Street safety

Wellsville resident Ralph Hills, 88, schools mayor Shayler on the problems
with the Main Street traffic flow.

88-year-old Wellsville resident Ralph Hills gave a driver education class to the Wellsville Village Board Monday night. Hills, a life-long local resident explained his disgust about the traffic flow on Main Street. Hills, who said he has a difficult time hearing, was invited to sit next to Mayor Randy Shayler as he schooled the board on what's wrong with the downtown traffic flow. For nine years, the businessman taught the 55 Alive traffic course to aging drivers. "I've said right along it's safer for a jaywalker to go across Main Street than it is to cross at your intersections," Hills said. He called the Main Street pattern "fancy shmancy." Hills had multiple concerns. The first was the lack of painted cross walks at every intersection. His primary concern, though, was how lanes of traffic were established. Hills said the left, or inner most lane should be for thru traffic and left turns only while the right or outer lane should only be for right turns. He suggested the village has everything backwards and referred to the DOT driver education manual. He continued for several more minutes explaining his position to the village board. The end result was a promise from Mayor Shayler that he, the police chief and DPW Director would review the traffic flow. Shayer said "you may not like our answer, but we will research it." Hills said he was just glad someone listened.