COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Orange barrels can sometimes mean financial disaster for businesses.
A road construction project on High Street in old North Columbus put the nail in the coffin for several businesses and caused others to struggle. But now that the orange barrels are gone, is business starting to rebound?
"The great thing about it is now that it's done, it's definitely paid off. It looks a lot better. The streets are a lot more user friendly, parking for cars," said Jack Bame, of the Little Barbershop.
Bame said the project that tore through the front of his business also tore down his bottom line. But with the combination of Ohio State University students returning to the area, football games and finished construction, things are looking up.
"We're pretty excited about the future of this side of campus, competing now with the newer south campus area," Bame said.
North of the barbershop sit Gumby's Pizza and Campus Cuts. Employees from each business said they were hit extremely hard when the construction project was in full swing.
"Well, we're still waiting to see as far as the customer base coming through … but it was a non-stop ghost town here. There were no customers, no business whatsoever," said Sharice Allen, of Campus Cuts.
"I mean, less people were walking down the street. It was hard to ride a bike … so I guess now that the barrels are gone, people will be speeding a bit more, but a little more business will be good," said Alex Detillio, of Gumby's Pizza.
But with the new horizons come new challenges.
"Now that all the cones and everything is gone, people are doing way over 25 (mph). They're just zooming right past," Allen said.
The speed limit along a portion of the renovated High Street is 25 mph.
"People have been speeding a lot more. I think people are excited about it," Detillio said.
NBC 4's Matt Alvarez used the NBC 4 radar gun and clocked drivers between Duncan and Dodridge streets for 15 minutes.
Drivers were clocked traveling between 35 and 39 mph in the 25 mph zone.
NBC 4 gave the results to police, but did not reveal information other than the fact that drivers were clocked speeding in the area. Police will investigate further.
Residents who would like the City of Columbus to conduct a speed study in their neighborhood can file a request by calling the 311 line at 614-645-3111.
For additional information, stay with nbc4i.com and NBC 4 and refresh nbc4i.com -- Where Accuracy Matters.
To submit a story idea or news tip, e-mail us at stories@nbc4i.com.
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