East Lansing city officials are right to take a closer look at transportation concerns along East Grand River Avenue. But before any final decisions are made, the function of the new progress must be considered before the form - when discussing changes to roadways, the terms “aesthetically pleasing” can lead to trouble, opting for style over the much-needed changes an area may need.

The East Lansing Transportation Commission presented its plan Tuesday for a section of East Grand River Avenue between Bogue Street and Hagadorn Road, intending to make the area more comforting for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians alike.

Suggestions in the proposal include 8-foot-wide sidewalks with pedestrian-level lighting, decorative paving, irrigated lawn parcels and a new traffic signal and crosswalk at the intersection with Stoddard Avenue. The plan is estimated to cost $550,000.

But the question is whether the current proposal does enough to deal with safety issues, as opposed to just making the street look nice.

Improvement is very necessary in that area, proven by incidents such as two vehicles crashing into the Asian House, 1001 E. Grand River Ave., on separate occasions last year. Pedestrian traffic also is not encouraged along the busy roadway, in which sidewalks and crosswalks are sketchy at best.

The area looks like suburban sprawl, a dramatic shift in aesthetics when compared to the rest of downtown East Lansing.The city has debated issues regarding traffic and city design for years. Business owners along that stretch of roadway often declare that changes in traffic will only hurt those establishments and prevent those who may become customers from ever entering their storefronts.

But business owners should consider an increase in ease for pedestrians to get from one point to another in the area would more than likely increase overall commerce.

Whereas a pedestrian is hesitant to walk across a five-lane highway, a median or crosswalk would raise confidence and help aesthetics at the same time.

While aesthetics may change with time, nothing looks better than knowing a person can get from one side of the street to another without having to worry about the dangers of crossing a large, busy stretch of road to do it.