Drivers on Douglas Avenue between Washington Avenue and Grove Street will lose a lane starting Aug. 26, when the City of Wichita begins a six-month pilot project aimed at slowing traffic and protecting pedestrians and students in a corridor where two people were critically injured Aug. 16.

The stretch will convert from its current configuration to a three-lane roadway: one lane in each direction plus a center turn lane, according to a city notice posted this week. On-street bicycle lanes, curb extensions, enhanced crosswalks and parking modifications are also part of the overhaul.

Construction begins Aug. 26 and runs through at least September, the city said. KSN reported the full pilot is expected to last six months.

Why now

The pilot lands on a corridor already marked by danger. On Aug. 16, two pedestrians were critically injured near Douglas and Washington after being struck by a Ford Mustang driven by a 20-year-old Wichita man, according to KWCH. The victims, a 67-year-old man from Marion and a 61-year-old woman from Bel Aire, were hospitalized in critical but stable condition.

Citywide, nearly 80 pedestrians had been struck by vehicles in Wichita as of late July. The City Council previously approved roughly $600,000 for pedestrian safety improvements at high-priority locations across the city, according to Wichita Life. That allocation is separate from this pilot.

Council approved 6-1 in December

The Wichita City Council voted 6-1 on Dec. 16, 2025 to authorize a pilot with curb markings on Douglas from Washington to Grove, according to council records. Mayor Lily Wu dissented.

The current plan goes further, adding full lane conversion, bicycle lanes, curb extensions and crosswalks beyond what the December motion described. No city official has publicly explained the expanded scope.

What the city will measure

City staff plan to collect pedestrian, bicycle and vehicular counts during the pilot. They will also monitor intersections to determine whether traffic signal timing needs adjusting and gather speed and travel-time data, the city said.

School zone protections

To reduce disruption for students, no construction work will take place between Interstate 135 and Grove during the week while school is in session, the city said.

The pilot sits within a broader, longer-term reconstruction of Douglas Avenue from Seneca Street to Meridian Avenue. That larger project will ultimately rebuild the road with one through lane in each direction, a center two-way left-turn lane, on-street parking, bicycle shared lane markings and a new drainage system, according to a separate city notice.

Residents who use the Douglas corridor between Washington and Grove should expect lane shifts and construction activity beginning Aug. 26.