Are Speed Limit Signs a Cost-Effective Strategy to Manage Urban Speeds and Implement 20MPH "Living Streets"?

According to the 20's Plenty campaign, 20mph speed limits for all residential areas throughout Europe have emerged as the key recommendation of the EU Transport and Tourism Committee on improving road safety in Europe. This announcement was made by European Parliament on June 21, 2011.

Studies have proven that 20 MPH speed zones have a dramatic impact on reducing the level of pedestrian injury. Slower street speeds are also associated with benefits such as more social connections, a stronger sense of community, reduced noise and stress levels, higher property values, more accessible walking and better conditions for bicycling. Unfortunately, citywide traffic calming projects, such as those created in many European cities over the past 30 years, can take many years or even decades to roll out across an entire city. So how can cities move forward on creating these zones in a more cost-effective way?

A British review suggests that, when combined with community involvement, even just posting lower speed limits can be an effective method to shave a few miles per hour off the speed of local vehicular traffic:

"Where signs-only schemes are used, small speed reductions and accident savings can be achieved if associated publicity and enforcement campaigns are also used."
Source: UK Transport Research Laboratory Report 363 Urban speed management methods

The British study looked at impacts of signs-only schemes on traffic speeds, concluding that there are small reductions of speeds just from signs particularly when they are combined with community awareness, enforcement and/or publicity. Although the decreased speeds resulting from signage efforts pale in comparison to the decreased speeds that communities see on so-called "living streets" with traffic calming (also known as "self-enforcing" speed limits), it is interesting that they did find reductions from signage alone.

Some cities and towns already seem to be aware of this strategy. The 20's Plenty campaign points out that cities in England with a population of 5 million people have adopted 20 MPH zones as their official policy. Locally, many cities and towns in Connecticut post 15 MPH or 20 MPH speed limit signs within residential areas, and even New York City is now cutting speed limits to 20 MPH within 75 different neighborhoods across the city. In Hartford, Connecticut, a 10 MPH speed limit is posted in front of the Legislative Office Building, and helps protect the lives of our state legislators.

Yet, in New Haven, our traffic engineers continue to post speed limit signage of 25 or 30 MPH across the entire city. The high speeds that result contribute to hundreds of severe injuries per year on our city streets.  Slower posted speed limits in residential areas, hospital, university, and school zones are something that the New Haven Safe Streets Coalition has specifically called for on many occasions.

Cities must be realistic when creating a strategy for more livable streets. On one hand, small decreases in speeds may not meet overall community goals for speed management, and probably won't significantly reduce the number of crashes.

But on the other hand, looking at the graph at the European Cyclists Federation website and the Federal Highway Administration data here, it seems that even a small reduction in speed within a given area could have some impact on the severity of injuries and fatalities over time.

Speed limits and local governance

One of the key limitations of the Transport Research Laboratory report, in our opinion, is that it did not address the question of whether lower speed limits in and of themselves can, over time, create additional political will for additional "self-enforcing" (traffic calmed) streets.

Signage for reduced speed limits are an "advertisement" of sorts for more livable streets within a city. Furthermore, it may be easier for neighborhood advocates to argue for concrete changes if they are able to point to even bigger disparities between desired outcomes (livable streets) and the day-to-day realities of vehicles traveling at dangerous speeds through their neighborhood.  Slower speed limits also provide ammunition for local residents to use more informally, when they talk to their neighbors who clearly violate the laws.  The converse principle is also true: treating all roads equally - by posting all of them at 25 or 30MPH - sends the implicit message that little can be accomplished, and discourages residents from taking any action.

Either way, the evidence seems clear that posted signs can translate into slightly lower speeds in the short term.  By catalyzing more effective citizen advocacy, can they also lead to the implementation of more effective, and more widespread, traffic calming strategies in the long term?

Update, 8/31/12: Portland, Oregon will be reducing speed limits to 20 miles per hour on 70 miles of residential streets.  Even a small adjustment in speed limits on this many streets is likely to save lives.  The results of this conversion will hopefully become a "case study" for complete streets advocates in other U.S. cities.

"Safe and Complete Streets Act of 2011" introduced in Congress

Last month companion bills were introduced in both chambers of the US Congress, the stated purpose of which is "to ensure the safety of all users of the transportation system, including pedestrians, bicyclists, transit users, children, older individuals, and individuals with disabilities, as they travel on and across federally funded streets and highways." Key provisions require states to effectuate either legislation or an "explicit" state DOT policy that (with apparent limited exception) "all transportation projects in the state shall accommodate the safety and convenience of all users in accordance with complete streets principles." See, H.R. 1780, available at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-112hr1780ih/pdf/BILLS-112hr1780ih.pdf. No Connecticut legislator serves on either of the Senate or House committees to which the bills have been assigned.

While the Connecticut General Assembly's passage of our Complete Streets law in 2009 (codified at CGS sections 13a-153f and 13b-13a) has been recognized by the National Complete Streets Coalition as the nation's second strongest state law, the proposed national legislation appears even stronger. That is because unlike CT's law, it does not provide for the state or a municipality's exemption from Complete Streets implementation if "the accommodation of all users is not consistent with the state's or municipality's program of construction, maintenance or repair." Keep current with the national campaign to pass the US Safe and Complete Streets Act of 2011, by clicking on http://www.completestreets.org/federal-policy/on-the-hill/.

- Courtesy Bike Walk Connecticut

WTNH: Pedestrians Not Safe in New Haven, Especially at "Notorious" Whitney and Audubon Street Crosswalk

A new report by WTNH, New Haven's local television station, responds to the recent T4America "Dangerous by Design" report that chronicles the nation's severe pedestrian safety issues.

To illustrate, WTNH focuses on pedestrian safety at the notorious intersection of Whitney and Audubon, across from Yale University. The New Haven Independent has recently focused significant coverage on this intersection: Check it out here and here. Residents in the area have recently taken it upon themselves to fill out a Complete Streets Request form, in order to request improvements to the area.

Click here to see the video and article.

An excerpt from WTNH:

NEW HAVEN, CONN. (WTNH) - A new study says Connecticut is not a safe state for pedestrians. The Hartford metropolitan area is the most dangerous in the state, the second most dangerous in all of New England. Hartford is the worst, New Haven is a close second.

Whitney Avenue at Audubon Street is notorious for being unsafe for pedestrians. The problem is that you have to walk a full two blocks before you get to a crosswalk.

Earlier this month anonymous advocates painted a makeshift crosswalk of their own. The city quickly washed it away saying, it's not safe. There's a slight hill making it difficult for drivers to see people in the road. But it's hard to find anyone who doesn't cross in the middle of the street.

"It seems quiet but once you step out, here goes the cars, and there's no crosswalk here and it's dangerous," says Melissa Doumbia of New Haven. Doumbia's daughter attends classes on Audubon, she makes her walk the other way. "Oh, yeah, absolutely, I actually have her meet me down at the other end most of the time," says Doumbia.

With delivery trucks often parked in the area, visibility isn't the best for drivers and pedestrians. "People drive crazy here, everyone's rushing, there's a lot of students, there's bikes, a lot of bikes," says Francesca Colasanto of Branford.

A new study by Transportation for America is trying to highlight the problem. Over the last ten years, 373 pedestrians were killed in Connecticut. Pedestrians have only a 15 percent chance of survival when hit by a car going 40 miles an hour... According to the study, a full 12.5 percent of traffic deaths involved pedestrians.

Walkable Westville: What Makes a Neighborhood Great

Bennett Lovett-Graff writes into the New Haven Review to describe the things that make his home of Westville (pictured here, in a photo from a 2008 cover piece in the NYTimes Real Estate Magazine) such a great neighborhood for walking, and living:

"I grew up on Brooklyn and attended all my life the public schools to which I walked nearly every day of the thirteen years I had to go. At the age of 17, I left my family home and never came back.

This is not the same as saying that I didn't return to New York or even Brooklyn. I did. But I didn't return "home" in that most traditional of senses: taking up residence, as my brother did till age 35, in my parents' five-bedroom home on Glenwood Road.

When I left New York for the last time after a two-year stint as an editor to return to New Haven (yes, I lived here twice), my wife and I were not only overjoyed, we even returned to the neighborhood in which we had rented the first time around: that part of Westville between Whalley & Derby on the north and south respectively; and Yale Avenue and Forest Road as far as east and west go. We have had no regrets since in the last 10 years that we have resided here, and we both chalk that up not to New Haven itself, but the neighborhood in which we reside.

I could write electronic ream after ream on the wonderfulness of this neighborhood. My children walk two blocks to school (Edgewood School); my wife walks two blocks to work (Mitchell Library); we walk two blocks to synagogue (Beth-El Keser Israel); we have farmer's market directly across the street in the summers; access to tennis courts in Edgewood Park (across the street) and Yale fields (three blocks) respectively; sledding at the Yale golf course in the winter five blocks away we can walk less than a block to five art galleries, four bars, five restaurants.

It's the neighborhood thus that has made New Haven home for us (and our children) and not "New Haven" itself. The spatial proximity of creature comforts, leisure activities, the necessities of food and culture have created a latitude and lassitude in time: it moves more slowly, more relaxedly, more satisfactorily, with less alienating effects as I wave at friends going north along my block to synagogue or walking their children south along it to school or heading in either direction with dogs in tow or on bikes or in jogging suits.

Were I to leave New Haven, what I would miss is not its individual places or events but entire gestalt of a community created in a small corner of the city."

As reported recently in the New Haven Independent, neighbors are working on numerous Complete Streets submissions to make this neighborhood even better. If you live in Westville and want to get involved in making your streets even more able to foster a sense of community and local pride, please contact the Westville Village Renaissance Alliance (WVRA) or your local Alderperson.

Outside the historic core, not all of Westville is so walkable. Phil Langdon writes in the New Urban News about how Whalley Avenue, a main thoroughfare through the area, is an example of the Connecticut Department of Transportation's failure to address traffic safety issues. After an 11 year old was killed in a hit and run, the City of New Haven actually approved ConnDOT's widening of the road from two lanes to four lanes, which will make speeds even higher.

First Annual "Fair Haven Family Stroll": Saturday, May 7

Come out to the Quinnipiac River Park (corner of Grand Avenue and Front Street in New Haven) on Saturday, May 7, 2011 from 11am - 3pm for the first annual Fair Haven Family Stroll. The event is a fundraiser for four Fair Haven-based childcare centers - Alexis Hill Montessori School, Centro San Jose, Farnam Neighborhood House, and the Heights' Friends Center for Children.

The event will include a "stroll" around the Bridge Loop over the Quinnipiac to raise money to support existing families and to expand programs to reach more neighborhood families. All who register for the stroll or sponsor a "stroller" for at least $10 will receive a grocery tote bag filled with information about local resources, including a family resource map of Fair Haven and Fair Haven Heights.

Also, between 11am and 3pm there will be a festival in the park, with family-friendly activities including story-telling, yoga, dance, interactive music, food, and lots of arts and crafts.

NHPD Chief Limon Wonders: When Will ConnDOT Stop Designing Roads That Kill People?

This March, the state's first Traffic Safety Conference was held at Yale-New Haven Hospital. According to attendees, the meeting addressed a broad scope of injury prevention factors -- examining motorcycle safety, the use of child car seats, impaired (cell phone distraction, substance abuse) driving, safety for new and old drivers, and enhanced police enforcement.

To read a complete round-up of the event, please see "When will transportation departments start making roads safe for all?", by Phil Langdon of the New Urban News. Mr. Langdon writes that while traffic deaths have fallen dramatically, safety advocates and officials still pay far too little attention to the potential of better street design. Public comments at the bottom of Langdon's piece are also helpful to illustrate current conditions in New Haven.

Though its focus was on other injury prevention factors, the Traffic Safety Conference also highlighted CT DOT's inadequate application of proper street design for cities in our cities. New Haven Police Chief Frank Limon showed two very striking maps, one of vehicular accidents, the other of vehicular violations. In Limon's maps, the traffic violations (like running red lights) were focused on typical New Haven streets, which are sometimes patrolled by traffic enforcement officers particularly within pedestrian-heavy retail districts. But fatal accidents were concentrated along the state roads (which also serve as city arterials) that have been recently rebuilt to DOT standards -- roads with wide and multiple turn lanes in car oriented environments like Foxon Road and Ella Grasso Boulevard.

Limon spoke at length about the intersection of Derby Avenue and Ella Grasso Boulevard, a spot that has seen dozens of severe crashes. In this location, ConnDOT installed multiple turn lanes, and broad expanses of pavement, within the past five years. Chief Limon advised: "Don't go near it."

Limon's data presented a clear case of what New Urban planners and traffic safety advocates have long argued -- that the wider lanes and higher speeds in single use zones create congestion and fatal accidents.

It is of great concern to many citizens that the current planning for the rebuilding of the Route 34 Connector and Route 34 West around the hospital zone is focused, as these failed DOT projects are, on maximizing high-speed travel lanes (aided and abetted by underground service roads). Dozens of public meetings and workshops have been held over the past year, in which hundreds of New Haven residents have demanded walkable and bikeable streets, traffic demand management and transit development rather than yet another at-grade urban highway.

Mr. Langdon's article argues that ConnDOT has largely failed the city over the past few years, not just because of deadly road projects like Ella Grasso Boulevard and Foxon Road, but also due to its negligent designs within smaller neighborhood districts like Westville and Whalley/Edgewood (shown in the photo here). Mr. Langdon notes:

Even today, DOT continues to carry out pedestrian-hostile projects in New Haven. Mark Abraham, leader of the New Haven Safe Streets Coalition, points to the current widening of Whalley Avenue, a thoroughfare that carries commuter traffic between downtown New Haven and suburban Woodbridge.

Says Abraham: "Whalley Avenue, in a densely settled area of New Haven, along a site that has been the scene of hundreds of crashes, including one that killed an 11-year-old girl in a hit-and-run, was unfortunately converted from a 2-lane road into a 4-lane road with no pedestrian medians, raised intersections, or other measures typically used to make streets in urban areas safer to pedestrians. In addition, there are long sections with no crosswalks whatsoever...." "Hundreds of neighbors and elected officials pressed for reasonable design changes, but the DOT, working in tandem with city government, was simply unwilling or unable to take significant steps that would have made the area safer but also supported retail activity along the street. Recent studies have shown that walkable streets have far fewer retail vacancies and 50 percent higher retail rents."

Alderman Dildine said that in his view,” a road diet is the only solution for residential neighborhoods.” DOT, he said, often seems to drag its heels on initiatives and policies that would make places function better for people who are not behind the wheel.

NHTSA has consistently found that three of every 10 fatal motor vehicle crashes involve speeding. In 2000, 30 percent of fatal crashes involved speeding. In 2009, despite progress in other respects, 31 percent of fatal crashes involved speeding. And as research has shown, the speed of a motor vehicle is what’s lethal for a pedestrian. Bring down the speed and a person who’s hit by a car has a far greater likelihood of surviving.

What all of this tells me is that community design, and particularly street design, are crucial ingredients in traffic safety. Communities are not going to be able to control driver behavior adequately through ticketing, red-light cameras, distracted-driver campaigns, and other measures of those sorts. Street design has to be an important element in the government response. Street design must be on the agenda of any conference looking for comprehensive solutions to the reduced, but still grievous, plague of traffic deaths.

At the very least, Langdon concludes, it is time for state transportation departments to stop the lip service and to start making real changes.

Anstress Farwell contributed a portion of the text within this online post.

Petition and Discussion to Stop the Violence in New Haven

As part of our efforts to advocate for streets that are safe, comfortable and attractive for residents of all ages and abilities, the New Haven Safe Streets Coalition maintains a strong focus on policies such as "complete streets" and lower speeds, which have been proven to lead to a reduction in the hundreds of traffic injuries and fatalities that plague our community each year.

However, our efforts have also focused on the crucial links between physical activity, community cohesion, safe streets and community violence. These relationships are well documented on the Prevention Institute page, Connecting Safety to Chronic Disease, and elsewhere. An example application of this knowledge is San Francisco's Pedestrian Environmental Quality Index, which is used to plan walkable neighborhoods and which takes perceived public safety (like graffiti and lighting) into account. Safer streets and safe neighborhoods can lead to increased rates of walking and cycling, which are directly linked to reductions in overall injuries and fatalities as well as other gains in community well-being.

The tragic killing of Mitchell Dubey, a well-loved Downtown New Haven bicycle mechanic and musician, and other recent homicides within a few of New Haven's neighborhoods have spurred an increased level of attention to safety issues in the city.

If you would like to join in this discussion, the link and petition below may be of interest. Feel free to comment, add relevant documents or stories, discuss suggested violence prevent strategies, or recommend other items that should be on the page.

Petition: Stop the Violence in New Haven: http://www.seeclickfix.com/issues/90790

Addressing issues of public safety often requires persistence and collaboration across the civic sector. As one example, the image here shows the dark ceiling of the Chapel Street arcade at 900 Chapel Street last year, which had long-neglected, burned-out lights before it was "fixed" (and re-lit) through a combination of SeeClickFix issues, numerous calls to the property owner by local elected officials, citizens, and officials at the Town Green District, and several of Mary O'Leary's newspaper stories in the New Haven Register. Poorly-lit or abandoned public spaces cause a feeling of insecurity, and can discourage local residents from walking.

In addition to civic collaboration, individual relationships and community cohesion (which a new research brief shows can be severely undermined by income inequality) are critical as well. As local organizer Kevin Ewing points out on the SeeClickFix thread above, "The only people who are going to be able to stop the violence and crime happening in our communities are the people who are committing the acts of violence and crime in our communities. The rest of us have to convince them to stop. It's not going to happen unless we directly engage them... build relationships with them... understand what they want and push them to go after it. I don't think we need more programs. I think we need to fund the ones that make real impact. More importantly I think we need to fund the PEOPLE who are on the ground making direct differences."

On the same thread, Barbara Tinney suggests citizens take action around issues of gun control: "When the quality of life and public safety everywhere in our city becomes everyones concern then we can stop gun violence. When everyone asks the question - how do guns find there way into the streets of New Haven and demand an answer then we can stop gun violence. When we decide that no -one has the answer and that the solution will only result from true collective action then we can stop gun violence. When tragedy isn't the trigger for collective outrage, but is replaced with the genuine belief that we as citizens are better off when everyone is safe and we act accordingly then we can stop gun violence. We, the collective we that crosses neighborhood boundaries, racial lines, socio-economic differences and all the other things that keep us in our silos decide that will not not stand for gun violence in our city then we will witness its elimination. If we muster the will to take a stand as full participants in community life we can stop gun violence."

The New York Times recently highlighted this issue, pointing out that guns that fire 33 bullets before re-loading are now legal again thanks to the expiration of the ban on assault weapons. The Connecticut Against Gun Violence organization maintains a useful page with facts about this issue locally. For example, in Connecticut, one study showed that 23% of small-city 9th and 10th graders and 15% of affluent suburban 9th and 10th graders said that it would be sort of easy or very easy to get a gun. New Haven is a member of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a national group devoted to this issue.

Although Connecticut and New Haven are, in general, very safe places, this issue indirectly or directly affects all of us, and it must be addressed if we want to have healthier, more vibrant streets.

More Information

For information about public safety related to New Haven, one place to begin is the New Haven Health Department's briefing reports:

Creating a Healthy and Safe City: The Impact of Violence in New Haven (2011)

Executive Summary (Short Version)
http://healthmattersnh.net/community/creating-a-healthy-and-safe-city

Full Report (with Maps, Charts etc.)
http://ctdatahaven.org/know/index.php/File:Creating_a_Healthy_and_Safe_City_2011_sml.pdf

Additionally, Community Mediation and the New Haven Police Department have been holding a series of discussions on the topic of community and police partnerships. Please see the schedule of events and a summary of the discussions at this page.

SB706 Intersection Safety Camera Legislation Passes CGA Committee (Again)

A new bill allowing cities to install intersection safety cameras, which issue tickets to vehicles that do not obey red light signals, has passed the Transportation Committee by a vote of 25 to 11. Text and other information about the bill, currently labeled S.B. 706, may be found here on the Connecticut General Assembly's website. There are many supporters of the bill this year, including Toni Walker and Roland Lemar, state representatives from New Haven. The bill is also supported by Bike Walk Connecticut, the state's largest bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organization.

The Hartford Courant reports at http://www.courant.com/news/politics/hc-red-light-cameras-0319-20110318,0,594323.story, and links to an online poll (shown here) which, with 1,072 votes recorded, indicates support for the devices. An excerpt from the Courant's coverage:

The legislature's transportation committee voted Friday to approve a bill that would enable any Connecticut municipality with a population of more than 60,000 to install cameras to take pictures of red-light violators at intersections, and to impose a fine of $124 for each violation.

The 25-11 committee vote sends the bill to the floor of the state Senate for debate and action. Approval also would be required in the House before the bill could be sent to the governor, who then would decide whether to sign it into law. Legislative approval isn't guaranteed. At least one such bill has cleared the committee in recent years, but none has been approved in the full House and Senate.

According to the Courant, the towns of more than 60,000 people in Connecticut are Bridgeport, New Haven, Hartford, Stamford, Waterbury, Norwalk, Danbury, New Britain, West Hartford, Greenwich, Hamden, Meriden and Bristol.

Click here for our coverage of previous years' legislation, and here for an earlier summary from the Tri State Transportation Campaign.

A group called CT Safe Roads has launched a website to help advocate for the devices. If you support the use of intersection safety cameras, which are currently deployed in more than 400 U.S. cities and have been shown to be extremely effective at reducing deaths caused by red light running, please visit the website and email, call or set up a visit with your state representatives. Several well-written op-eds supporting the cameras can be found in Connecticut's newspapers, including the Courant, Bristol Press, and New Haven Register.

City Point Neighborhood Association Requests Traffic Improvements

The City Point Neighborhood Association, after meeting with the City of New Haven and volunteers from the New Haven Safe Streets Coalition, has decided to request temporary and permanent traffic calming measures through the City's Complete Streets program.

City Point is a beautiful area at the southern end of the "Hill" neighborhood, bordering Long Island Sound. Designated as an official historic district by the City of New Haven, the area is known for its small oysterman's houses, marina, parks, and well-preserved 19th- and early 20th-century homes along Howard Avenue (such as the one shown here). Despite the area's beauty, community cohesiveness and high quality of life, traffic has been identified as a major concern. In the 2010 Neighborhood Quality of Life Survey, the several dozen City Point residents who responded clearly indicated that the control of traffic speeding and enforcement in the area was not acceptable.

The measures the group who was present has decided to request are as follows (these are excerpted directly from emails to the neighborhood association):

Temporary Measures

Seasonal crosswalk signs--these are temporary structures that are placed in the middle street that alert drivers to watch for pedestrians. These are seasonal in that they can't be placed in the streets in the winter (because of snow, plowing, etc) but they have been used and proven to be effective on State Street. We are going to request these for various spots on Howard Avenue.

Removable Speed Bumps--these are temporary because they are placed on the street and removable, not cemented into the road. These will be placed on Sea Street because and possibly other small streets that experience heavy traffic at times (Sea Street does because of the Sound School). These are not as effective on wide roads and are not a good option for Howard Avenue.

If you would like to sign onto the application we will submit requesting these temporary measures from the city, please contact the Safe Streets Coalition via email at newhavensafestreets [a/t] gmail.com to sign on (replace the "[a/t]" with an "@" sign).

Options for Permanent Traffic Calming

These were discussed in detail at last week's meeting. I will only provide a brief overview of each here as these options will be discussed again in detail in April when we reconvene. (However, please feel free to send any questions you may have in the meantime). Whatever options we do choose, city and Safe Streets staff did stress that these are not truly effective unless they are used in multiple locations (for example, one traffic circle or one bump out alone will not serve to slow traffic, but a series of them will).

Traffic circles--These are "roundabout" structures, that traffic has to go around. These have proven to be extremely effective is dramatically reducing speed and accidents on streets that are long, straight and wide (like Howard Avenue). These have been installed on Woodward Avenue in the East Shore area.

Medians- these can consist of "temporary" ones that are huge potted plants down the length of the road or permanent, cement ones. To be effective, a cement/asphalt median needs to have plantings.

Bump outs- this is where the sidewalk extends out into the street more than usual at intersections. It serves to slow cars down since it narrows the road, but also gives pedestrians a little extra safety as it increases both their view of traffic and traffic's view of them.

Textured pavement-used in conjunction with bump outs, textured pavement can be concrete that is "stamped" to look like stone (or a plastic based covering that looks like brick) and is bumpy which slows traffic.

Bike lanes- bike lanes also help slow traffic as they visually narrow the road to drivers. However, these have already been planned for Howard Avenue and used alone, will not likely slow traffic significantly on an avenue as wide as Howard.

Other Resources

The City of New Haven's Complete Streets manual includes more detailed information and photos of various traffic calming measures. It can be found here: http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/TrafficParking/pdfs/CS-Manual-04-05-10.pdf Beginning on page 47, there are descriptions and photos of both temporary and permanent traffic calming measures. At the end of the manual is the application. Anyone can fill one out and submit it at any time, but especially for larger, permanent traffic calming plans, the city is not very likely to approve an application unless it has support from a large amount of residents in the given area.

More information on the Safe Streets group: http://www.newhavensafestreets.org/

Ongoing Crashes at the Tomlinson Bridge in New Haven: State Board Called for Speedy Resolution Last Fall, but Few Actions Taken

As we have reported multiple times in the past two years, the Tomlinson Bridge in New Haven has been the subject of local, state and national news coverage because of the extreme danger presented by the combination of an oblique rail crossing and a high speed road. The Bridge is the topic of a SeeClickFix issue that has received over 14,000 hits.

The Connecticut Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board has highlighted these concerns in their 2010 annual report, as one of the most severe issues in the entire state. Their report, and a history of correspondence on the issue which includes calls for a "speedy" fix to the problem, is available here as a PDF.

Please contact us if you would like to add more reports of crashes to the list below. More information on the Tomlinson Bridge may be found on Wikipedia (in the photo here, it is shown on the left hand side). There are also more comprehensive articles on the history of the controversy on Design New Haven as well as on our site. The bridge is a crucial connection between Downtown New Haven and all neighborhoods, urban and suburban, located towards the east side of Downtown.

The following bicycle injuries have been documented at this railroad crossing. This is an incomplete list that only highlights some of the more severe falls:

**June 26, 2010: Two cyclists fall on tracks during the annual New Haven Century. One of them breaks his femur.

**September 26, 2009: Two cyclists fall and are injured while riding during a Yale Cycling event.

**September 25, 2009: A cyclist falls during an evening group ride over the tracks, and suffers minor injuries.

**September 13, 2009: A cyclist falls after his wheels become stuck in the tracks.

**August 30, 2009: A cyclist is involved in a hit-and-run incident on the bridge and severely injures his arm and shoulder.

**June 24, 2009: A cyclist falls on tracks while biking to Lighthouse Point and fractures her wrist.

**August 2008: A cyclist crashes on the bridge, due to a passing car, and breaks his elbow.

**August, 2007: A cyclist falls on tracks and seriously injures his left shoulder rotator cuff.

According to local bicycle shops and avid riders, many other cyclists (including city officials) have reportedly crashed while cycling over the tracks, suffering broken arms and collarbones.

Local bicycle advocates, including members of ElmCityCycling, have urged city and Connecticut Department of Transportation (ConnDOT) officials to take action to prevent further injuries at the crossing. To date, signs have been posted warning cyclists of the crossing, but injuries persist. Cyclists have commented on the limited visibility of the signs. To date, ConnDOT has not adequately addressed the situation.

Permanent Mid-Block Crosswalk Needed at End of Library Walk, on High Street at Yale Campus

Brian Tang's post on SeeClickFix details the issue, and his photo (copied here) shows a temporary measure that has worked very well to serve pedestrians in the area.

A similar issue concerning the need for mid-block crossings on the wide blocks surrounding Yale's undergraduate dormitories, in front of the Yale University Theater, may be found here: http://seeclickfix.com/issues/3369:

A crosswalk is needed from the University Theater to the Library Walk. There is a mid block crosswalk on Temple Street, in front of the Omni Hotel (which has far fewer pedestrians than this area!), which could serve as a model. Doing this would require bumping out the curbs and removing some parking spaces, in order to increase the visibility of pedestrians.

A crosswalk would also help reduce speeding on the street. Cars currently travel through this area at very high speeds, putting pedestrians' lives at risk. It is surprising nothing has been done about the situation, considering the number of students who have been injured and the enormous numbers of pedestrians who cross York Street to get from one dormitory to the other.

A request for mid-block crossings like these should be submitted using one of the City's new "Complete Streets" forms. Please visit http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/Engineering/completestreets.asp if you are interested in filling out a form, and contact us if you need assistance.

52 Motor Vehicle Crashes in A Few Hours, After New Haven Snowstorm

An excerpt from reporting from Paul Bass:

Police Monday responded to 44 traffic accidents by 4 p.m. and were headed out to handle eight more, thanks to continuing street problems connected to last week’s storm. Snowbanks blinding drivers around town, such as the woman who ended up stumbling out of her smashed Dodge Stratus and collapsing on Dixwell Avenue.

As many as five or six accidents were reported at a time Monday afternoon in the upper Whalley/Amity area. Traffic was reported gridlocked or near-gridlocked at times along Chapel Street and the Boulevard. Two people did go to the hospital by ambulance and traffic ground to periodic halts for a half hour after a 9:15 a.m. crash at Dixwell and Webster.

14-Year Old Killed by Hit and Run Driver in Fair Haven

From reporting in the New Haven Independent at http://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/teen_cyclist_killed/:

A 14-year-old was riding his bike on Front Street near Grand Avenue early Saturday morning when he was hit by a car. The teenager was pronounced dead a short time later, according to police spokesman Officer Joe Avery. Police identified the victim as Keyshawn Moore of Orchard Street.

An accident reconstruction team is investigating and police are seeking witnesses. Police are asking anyone with information about the incident to call (203) 946-6316 or (203) 946-6304.

Friends on the Way: Approval for Quinnipiac Avenue Repaving, Roundabouts and Livable Street Designs

Original Post, 3/20/09: With the release of stimulus package funding, the reconstruction of the heart of Quinnipiac Avenue is now scheduled to begin as early as this fall.

The project had been in the works for about ten years. Due to extensive citizen input, over that time it progressed from a standard high-speed ConnDOT design into a more livable street with roundabouts, wider sidewalks and chicanes. The road passes through the heart of the Quinnipiac River District of Fair Haven Heights, one of New Haven's most important historic areas, with homes still dating from the 1760s. See this post for previous articles on Quinnipiac Avenue.

These "livable streets" measures will serve to reduce traffic speeds, which will have the direct effect of raising property values, improving safety, and encouraging people to make more friends (a study from England recently re-confirmed Appleyard's 1969 research on that subject). They will hopefully prevent the types of traffic-related injuries that have been fairly common on this section of road.

Yet questions within the community still abound about when other sections of the avenue -- which is rife with speeding (see photo, courtesy of the NH Independent) -- will be improved. Excerpts from local coverage below:

Public gives thumbs-up to redesign, NH Register, 3/25/09

It took eight years of planning, but dozens of Quinnipiac Avenue residents this week expressed satisfaction with the final version of a city redesign of a portion of the major thoroughfare. The $7.1 million project will extend from Lenox Avenue to Clifton Street and add safety features that will convert it from a straightaway, while providing for protected on-street parking and other features, to the delight of homeowners.

“We’re so looking forward to being able to walk him up the street with usable sidewalks,” said Quinnipiac Avenue resident Ian Christmann, referring to his 11-month-old son, Sawyer, who joined his parents at the community meeting at the Pilgrim Church in Fair Haven Heights.

Miller said the project changes Quinnipiac from Lenox to East Grand avenues by adding roundabouts, bump-outs for parking and chicains, which are curb extensions that alternate from one side of the street to the other, forming S-shaped curves.

Chris Ozyck, another Quinnipiac Avenue resident, congratulated the city on the project and also for traffic enforcement there and on Front Street, which has slowed down vehicles.

Q Ave Residents Ask For More “Redo”, NH Independent, 3/24/09

Bekhrad was one of dozens of local residents who turned out to hear an update from city officials on the status of the Quinnipiac Avenue “re-do."

The city’s plan features a number of traffic calming measures — including a roundabout, chicanes, and bumpouts — designed to discourage cars from flooring it on the straightaway. The project also includes reconstruction of the retaining wall and sidewalks along the avenue.

Dismayed at the state of the avenue, and looking for a public partner for her private investment, Bekhrad went right to the top with a recent request to fix her road. Last month she sent President Obama a letter, asking for his cooperation and financial support on her project. She copied the letter to Mayor DeStefano.

“We haven’t begun to think about the rest of the road,” the mayor replied. “So it could be at least another eight to ten years?” Bekhrad asked. The mayor agreed that yes, it could be as long eight or ten years, but promised to take up the matter. “Between now and whenever we next get together we’ll take a look at areas north and south of Phase One and Two,” he said.

“It’s very difficult to attract people,” Bekhrad said. She’s trying to fill seven of her $800,000 condos. “People came today, they said, ‘Your units are beautiful, but the street stinks,’” Bekhrad said. She didn’t close the deal with the prospective tenants.

Christmann was encouraged by the meeting, and looks forward to a transformation of his street. “We have one of the most walkable areas in town,” he said, describing a local riverside walking route. “But we’re stuck with a stretch of Quinnipiac Avenue that is treacherous — four wheel drive treacherous.”

Update 1/5/2011: Phase One of the project nears completion. According to reporting in the New Haven Independent, many neighbors are cheering the progress:

Traffic-calming techniques, meant to improve safety, are a vital part of the Quinnipiac reconstruction. Read about their significance here and here . Roundabouts and separators have been installed, but there’s work in this area left still.

Pedestrian Struck by Car at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) in New Haven

Reporting in the New Haven Independent:

An 18-year-old girl told police she was in the crosswalk when she was hit by a car on Farnham Avenue on Tuesday night. The 83-year-old woman who hit her told cops the teen wasn’t using the crosswalk.

As is often the case when vehicles mow down pedestrians, the driver was not charged. In many other countries, they would have automatically been found to be at fault by the law, unless specifically proven otherwise (given that they are operating a more powerful vehicle).

Luckily for the student who was hit, the driver appears to have been traveling at a slow speed, perhaps encouraged by the presence of an in road pedestrian sign.

Another Branford Pedestrian Seriously Injured: Second Hit in Two Days in CT Shoreline Town

Excerpt from NH Register coverage:

A man was seriously injured in a crash Monday night, the second town pedestrian hurt in a major accident in just 24 hours.

The man, who is a truck driver, was struck at about 5:07 p.m. as he crossed East Industrial Road, police and fire officials said. He was carrying groceries from Stop & Shop to the lot where his truck was parked at the TA Travel Center truck stop when he was hit by a mid-size sedan, Deputy Fire Chief Ron Mullen said.

The man, who is believed to be from out of state and whose name was not released by police, was transported to Yale New-Haven Hospital with serious head and leg injuries, Mullen said.

He is the second Branford pedestrian with serious injuries taken to that hospital in two days. At about 6 p.m. Sunday, Joyce Asante, 45, was struck by a car when she was crossing Route 1. Asante, whose last known address was in New Haven, was in serious condition at Yale New-Haven Hospital Monday.

Hit and Run in New Haven Sends Pregnant Woman to Trauma Room; Cyclist Struck by Vehicle: Both in Areas Noted on SeeClickFix for Dangerous Conditions

Yet more crashes on sections of Fair Haven area roads that are nowhere near in line with the city's complete streets policy. Some of the details below are via the New Haven Independent:

A pregnant woman is in trauma at the Hospital of St. Raphael’s after a driver hit her on Foxon Boulevard at 6:44 p.m. Wednesday, then fled the scene.

This area of Foxon, far from a complete street, is known for speeding in excess of 70 miles per hour, drag racing, and New Haven School (First Student) buses and CT Transit buses running red lights.

Also, a pick-up truck driver hit a 14-year-old bicyclist who was crossing the street at East and Humphrey at around 3:50 p.m. Wednesday. He was treated at Yale-New Haven for a “very minor” “foot/leg injury. The area of East and Humphrey is marked by poorly maintained pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, such as the "unsafe pedestrian crossing" on East reported on SeeClickFix, and the lack of proper bicycle infrastructure connecting Fair Haven to Downtown and East Rock.

New Haven Assistant Police Chief Hits Pedestrian Near Union Station

Excerpt from WTNH:

There was a strong police presence at the corner of South Orange and Columbus Monday night, one block from police headquarters. According to New Haven Police, respected member Assistant Chief Ariel Melendez, who joined the NHPD in 1979, struck a pedestrian around 5:30 p.m. Monday.

The victim, from Old Saybrook, was exiting his Saab sedan when Melendez hit him with his city-issued vehicle. The person hit was taken to Yale-New Haven Hospital.

State Office of Legislative Research (OLR) Report on Traffic Calming Initiatives in Connecticut

TRAFFIC CALMING INITIATIVES IN CONNECTICUT
By: Kevin E. McCarthy, Principal Analyst, January 2010

You asked for an update of OLR report 2005-R-0692 to discuss traffic calming initiatives in Connecticut that have been implemented more recently.

SUMMARY

This memo defines traffic calming and identifies commonly used measures. It describes recent traffic calming initiatives in New Canaan, New Haven, Newtown, Stamford, Wallingford, and Windsor. These initiatives include (1) procedures for receiving and acting on requests from residents and other interested parties to adopt and install traffic calming measures (New Canaan and Newtown); (2) measures to develop “complete streets” that ensure that all transportation users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit users, can travel safely and conveniently on city streets and sidewalks (New Haven); (3) the process for developing a city-wide traffic calming plan (Stamford); and (4) the process used by two municipalities (Wallingford and Windsor) to address traffic concerns along specific roads in residential neighborhoods. The report also discusses other initiatives in the state to promote traffic calming.

TRAFFIC CALMING

As noted in our earlier report, traffic calming refers to a wide range of measures designed to reduce traffic speed, discourage motorists from cutting through residential areas, and reduce the number of accidents. These measures can include physical changes to streets, such as erecting speed humps (segments where the street is raised by several inches for a length of several feet), bump-outs (extensions of the sidewalk to narrow the traffic lanes, particularly at crosswalks), and chicanes (changes in the alignment of lanes). Other measures affect how drivers perceive the roadway, e. g. , painting lines on the road to make lanes appear narrower and planting trees or shrubs along roads. Traffic calming can also involve education and speed limit enforcement, programs.

The Institute of Transportation Engineers has a traffic calming library, available on line at http://www.ite.org/traffic/. The library contains a searchable database of reports, articles and other documents related to traffic calming.

MUNICIPAL INITIATIVES

New Canaan

The town's Police Commission, which serves as the local traffic authority, has adopted a process to receive requests from residents and other interested parties for the adoption and installation of traffic calming measures. Requests may be submitted by letter or e-mail.

In response to such requests, the commission will seek the opinions of other town departments and traffic engineers through a Traffic Calming Working Group. The commission will use a report prepared by the Southwestern Regional Planning Agency (SWRPA) on the application of various traffic calming measures and recommended standards. Traffic calming measures must comply with the standards and practices of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE), American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and the Connecticut Department of Transportation. Traffic calming devices must conform to the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices as well as the ITE “Guideline for the Design and Application of Speed Humps. ”
Traffic calming measures may not inappropriately delay emergency responses to fires, medical, or other emergencies. The commission has identified certain streets and roads as emergency response routes where traffic calming devices that increase response times will not be considered.

Under the procedures, traffic calming must be neighborhood driven. Residents of an area proposed for installation of traffic calming measures must be given the opportunity to participate in the discussions leading to the implementation of such proposals. Informational meetings will be held with residents to present and discuss individual projects as the commission deems necessary.

New Haven

In October 2008, the city's Board of Aldermen adopted an order to establish a steering committee to develop a “complete streets” policy for the city, implement a complete streets program, and propose a complete streets ordinance. Specifically, the order seeks to establish a complete streets policy to ensure that all users of the transportation system, including pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit users can travel safely and conveniently on city streets and sidewalks. Under the policy, the needs of vulnerable users (children, the elderly, and persons with disabilities) would be given priority so that they can travel safely within the public right of way.

Under the order, the city will develop a manual to provide specific design guidelines for the construction of complete streets. The manual will include design standards to (1) establish a street classification system; (2) increase the safety and walk ability of city streets through tools that slow vehicle speeds; (3) create high visibility pedestrian crosswalks; (4) create safe, connected bike facilities for cyclists; (5) narrow travel lanes; and (6) address on-street parking policies.

Under the order, the city will:

1. establish a process for including community members in the planning and design process for streets in their neighborhoods;

2. give affected communities an opportunity to advocate for changes that will best serve their interests, including the opportunity to obtain input from landscape architects and economic development professionals;

3. coordinate educational campaigns targeting all users of the public right-of-way on their rights and responsibilities, with the goal of increasing the safety and civility of the streets; and

4. support the Police Department's traffic enforcement efforts and work with it to develop benchmarks for evaluating and measuring progress.

The city has also installed traffic calming measures in several neighborhoods. For example, it has installed four speed humps on River Street in Fair Haven to address drag racing that commonly took place there. It is installing a roundabout to slow north- and southbound traffic at West Park Avenue and Elm Street in Westville.

Newtown

In the spring of 2009, Newtown established procedures for the town's Police Commission to implement a traffic calming program. Under these procedures, the commission may use measures to reduce speed, enhance pedestrian safety, and reduce traffic diversion in residential neighborhoods. The procedures are intended to make efficient, cost- effective use of town resources by screening and prioritizing requests for traffic calming.

If a neighborhood requests traffic calming measures, the commission will request that the police chief or his designee research the request and determine a prudent course of action based on the Police Department's available resources and report these findings to the commission within 60 days.

After the chief reports his findings, he will be asked if the issue can be resolved using the resources that are available to the department. If the chief feels that the issue can be resolved within the department's resources, the chief will be asked to implement his plan for 120 days and report his findings to the commission.

After completing this process, the commission will decide if the department has satisfactorily addressed the issue. If the commission decides that the issue has been addressed properly, the chief will be asked to monitor the area, when resources are available, to ensure traffic compliance in the area of impact.

If neighbors in the area still feel that the town needs to put additional traffic calming measures into an area, they must submit a detailed written description of their traffic concerns with the signatures of at least 20 voters living in the area. This petition to request additional traffic calming measures must be presented to the commission at a regularly scheduled meeting.

After verifying the signatures and addresses, the commission must hold a hearing. Before it recommends installing neighborhood traffic control devices or traffic calming measures, it must request funds for a traffic study by a professional engineer to identify how best to address the concern for reduced speed, enhanced pedestrian safety, and reduced traffic diversion in the neighborhoods. The study may consider traffic and intersection volumes, traffic speed, and the extent of bicycle and pedestrian activity, among other things.

When completed, the study must be submitted to the commission for review. The commission will decide on a course of action, establish the plan's priority, and advise the Department of Public Works to request the appropriate amount of funding for materials and labor based on the most recent available cost estimates in its next budget. It may request funding sooner if such improvements are deemed desirable and consistent with the commission's plan. The commission may authorize a temporary course of action before moving forward with a permanent traffic calming solution.

The commission may request a demonstration of interest and support from neighborhood residents in the form of a petition signed by more than 60% of the residents on the affected streets. The petition must specify the area under consideration, the nature of the problem (speed, traffic volume, through traffic) and the traffic calming solutions being recommended to the commission.

The Police Department will monitor the effectiveness of any traffic calming measures that are installed. After one year, the commission will review the installation and decide if the measures were effective. The commission reserves the right to remove any traffic calming installations at any time that have not produced a desired or intended result, or are deemed dangerous.

Stamford

The city is developing a traffic calming master plan for all of its residential neighborhoods. Once developed, the plan will show street improvements that can help slow speeds through neighborhoods, reduce cut-through traffic, and better manage traffic. The plan will create an environment where pedestrians, vehicles, and bicycles can coexist.

The master plan is being developed through a process in which residents engage in a series of workshops (charrettes) where they discuss the values they wish their neighborhood to exemplify, the traffic-related problems that they wish to resolve, and the possible solutions for these problems. The input obtained from the residents provides the framework for the project team, led by Urban Engineers, Inc. , to complete the master plan.

The city's comprehensive approach towards traffic calming seeks to avoid moving problems such as speeding and cut-through traffic from one neighborhood to another in order to ensure safer, friendlier, and quieter roads throughout the city.

The Master Plan is being developed based on the comments received during the charrettes, phone calls, and e-mails. Further information about the city's planning process, including the final draft plan, is available at http://www.stamfordtrafficcalming.com.

Wallingford

In 2008, the South Central Regional Council of Governments (SCRCOG) conducted a pilot traffic calming study in Wallingford. The purpose of this pilot was to highlight the traffic calming study process developed as part of SCRCOG's Traffic Calming Tools Resource Guide (described below). Wallingford requested assistance with a traffic calming study on North Elm Street between Curtis Avenue and Christian Street. Adjacent land use in the study area includes housing and Choate Rosemary Hall School. Choate was building a new dorm on North Elm Street across from Curtis Avenue. As a result of this project Choate requested the town to install stop signs on North Elm Street at Curtis Avenue. The town responded that they would like to consider other options to slow down traffic and improve pedestrian crossings in the vicinity. The resulting traffic calming study sought to provide a “complete” street that accommodates traffic flow and provides pedestrian crossings in a safe environment.

The consultant team began the study by meeting with the town to gather input and information. The town supplied accident history and traffic count information. Initial field observations and meetings were conducted with the town Engineering and Police departments as well as Choate. To better understand traffic and pedestrian operations in the study area, information was collected on traffic volumes (daily, peak hour, and intersection turning movement counts), pedestrian volumes (at key cross walks), traffic speeds, and accident data. Existing roadway signing, pavement markings, and pedestrian activity were also observed. Information was also collected on the adjacent land uses.

An initial community meeting was held at Wallingford Town Hall. The consulting team gave a brief presentation that described the study team, study purpose, existing conditions, and traffic calming toolbox. It was also explained that the purpose of this meeting was to solicit input on issues and concerns in the study area and to identify opportunities to address the problems. The attendees were divided into small groups to discuss the issues and ideas for addressing them. After the discussion each group summarized its findings. The project team, including members from the town, met with members of the Choate Student Council. A brief presentation and work group session similar to the first community meeting was conducted as part of one of the regular student council meetings.

Additional meetings were held with the town staff (Engineering, Police, Public Works, Electrical Division and the mayor) and Choate to solicit feedback on preliminary options. A second community meeting was conducted at Town Hall to discuss the progress on the study and to present the study options. The consultant team gave a brief presentation outlining the issues and options. Following the presentation, a discussion was held on the options the community liked and other items to consider.

The consultant team prepared a final report for the town to consider as it moves forward with funding, approvals, and design. The options were presented for short-term and long-term considerations. Options for Choate to consider, such as pedestrian education programs, were also included.

Windsor

Windsor has considered a variety of traffic calming options for Rainbow Road, a collector (medium traffic) street that connects a residential area with a commercial area. Over an 18-month period in 2007 and 2008, the Health and Safety Committee of the Town Council considered such options as installing stop signs, installing medians to discourage truck traffic, and restriping the road. Town staff recommended against installing stop signs or speed humps on the road, arguing that they would be ineffective. In addition, they argued that speed humps would significantly delay emergency vehicles when they respond to calls from the several hundred households and businesses along the road.

The committee's July 27, 2009 meeting included an extensive discussion of its deliberations on traffic calming. The discussion is summarized at http://www.townofwindsorct.com/pages/government/towncouncil/documents/meetings/2009-07-27_1830_HS_agenda.pdf.

The town ultimately installed three small medians and several other traffic calming measures. As a pilot, it installed barriers to make the road one-way for part of its length. The latter measures prompted approximately 400 comments from motorists, overwhelmingly negative. The town took down the barriers to permit snow plows to pass, and town staff have recommended that the barriers not be re-installed in the spring. The council is continuing to address traffic issues in the affected area.

OTHER INITIATIVES

In 2008, SCRCOG developed a regional traffic calming resource guide. The guide (1) develops a systematic approach to traffic calming, (2) identifies key locations throughout the region, (3) describes how to engage the community in designing traffic calming measures, and (4) identifies and develops cost effective solutions and preliminary design concepts which could be permitted and constructed. The guide is available at http://www.scrcog.org/toc_files/TrafficCalming_ResourceGuide_Final.pdf.

In July 2009, the Connecticut chapter of the American Planning Association offered a course to help municipalities establish traffic calming programs for their roads. The course described various traffic calming devices, outlined potential positive and negative impacts on a neighborhood, and reviewed a sample traffic calming program. It also investigated related issues, such as impacts of traffic calming devices on liability, roadway maintenance, and emergency services. Participants performed case studies applying traffic calming measures to address traffic concerns. The course was offered to public works directors, highway superintendents, road foremen, town engineers, and town planners.

November 16: Downtown Crossing/Route 34 East Project Public Workshop to Focus on Walkability

The city recently received a major TIGER grant for boulevardization of a portion of the Route 34 highway. Refer to Design New Haven for detailed background; Tri State Transportation Campaign also has a summary here that indicates New Haven will most likely receive the "gold medal" for removing an urban highway (among many cities that would like to do so). A presentation takes place Tuesday, November 16 at 5:30, at the New Haven Free Public Library on the Green.

The image shown here is from an earlier application, and clearly does not account for pedestrian safety (showing, for example, enormous turning radii and wide crossing distances), but that's why the public meetings are being held. It will be essential that the streets surrounding the project go above and beyond the standards of the city's new Complete Streets policy, and that speeds in the area are reduced to 15-20 miles per hour. The 15 mile per hour average speed is the only level that is appropriate for a district with such high pedestrian traffic, is the only speed likely to support street-level economic activity and job creation (like that found on Chapel Street, for example), and is a speed limit that has been specifically requested for this area within at least four major citizen petitions that have attracted over 3,000 signatures from area residents and workers (following several pedestrian deaths or severe injuries).

Details on the workshop can be found below:

The City of New Haven invites you to attend a public presentation and workshop on the Downtown Crossing/Route 34 East Project. The presentation will be held on Tuesday, November 16th at 5:30 in the New Haven Public Library located on the Corner of Elm and Temple Streets.

The session will focus on the following areas of interest:
- Connectivity, Complete Streets
- Place-making: Streetscapes, Open Space, Land Use
- Economy: Growing Jobs and Taxes
- Environment: Walkability, Transit, Bike Routes and Lanes, and Sustainable Development

Please join us for a lively presentation and discussion lead by project consultants PB Americas, and the project's urban designers, Chan Krieger/NBBJ. Feel free to forward this notice to others who are interested in building a greater New Haven!

Community Mediation and New Haven Police Department holding community safety discussions

Community Mediation, together with the New Haven Police Department, is organizing a series of community dialogues with Chief Limon called "Creating Community-Police Partnerships." We invite you to join us by participating in community dialogues that will allow citizens to meet the new chief of police and to express issues of mutual concern. These dialogues are intended to promote discussions about topics that are important to all of us, such as public safety, healthier neighborhoods.

All dialogues are open to the public, so SPREAD THE WORD! -- pass this information on to your networks and let people in your communities and neighborhoods know about this opportunity!

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4
Barnard School, 6pm-8pm
170 Derby Ave, New Haven, CT
Districts: Westville, Beaver Hill & Dwight

Update: The New Haven Register and the New Haven Independent offer detailed coverage of the November 4th event.

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 1
Wilson Library, 5:30pm-7:30pm
303 Washington Ave, New Haven, CT
Districts: Hill North, Hill South, Downtown

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 8
Fair Haven Library, 5:30pm-7:30pm
182 Grand Ave, New Haven
Districts: Fair Haven, East Shore

TO BE ANNOUNCED….
St. Andrews Episcopal Church, 5:30pm-7:30pm
266 Shelton Ave, New Haven
Districts: Dixwell, Newhallville

Dozens of Injured at Treacherous Rail Crossing: Providence and Worcester Railroad (PWX) Facing Potential Liability and National Media Exposure

Original Post, 7/13/10: The Providence and Worcester Railroad is directly responsible for the treacherous stretch of road (i.e., the tracks themselves) at the Tomlinson Bridge, which we have previously reported on here.

According to ConnDOT, which has been working on the problem for over a year, the Railroad refuses to take or allow the state to take any meaningful action regarding their tracks. This despite the large number of documented crashes and injuries – including several in recent weeks – on Forbes Avenue on the PWRR's unused and unmaintained track. The crossing has caused dozens of serious injuries since opening in 2002.

Local citizens have guaranteed that every minor or major injury caused by the tracks will be communicated to the local, regional and national press as well as to a number of attorneys' offices throughout the Northeast. These include those recently causing New Haven police officers, professors at Yale University, and several citizens to fall, including one very severely breaking his leg on the track two weekends ago.

The location, heavily documented with information about injuries at SeeClickFix, Design New Haven, and Wikipedia, among other online websites, was the focus of a recent citizen protest that brought light to the unacceptable situation. The New Haven Independent covered the protest:

“This is unacceptable,” said Juli Stupakevich. So she and other angry and worried cyclists Monday evening bestrode the dangerous rails curving bumpily crossing Route One at the entrance to the port just west of Waterfront Street. After years of documented accidents at the spot due to protruding and curving tracks that topple riders, the tracks’ owners, Providence & Worcester Railroad, came up with a graphic response. It put up signs urging riders to dismount and walk.

The City of New Haven's economic development administration also weighed in, in an email message to the Independent's reporter:

We agree that the warning signs are not acceptable,” Piscitelli wrote in an email message after the rally. “A constructed physical improvement is necessary. As you know, this is a state road. At our request ConnDOT convened a working group in 2009, but there has been no follow-up to date."

Widely referred to by citizens as a "death trap," the location has also inspired literally dozens of open public letters over the past weeks from local advocates. The bridge is designated as the primary "recommended cross-state" bicycle route by the State of Connecticut, and is also the city's recommended route as a route that "connects New Haven's neighborhoods while enjoying as many calm, wide, and scenic streets as possible."

Excerpts from a few of the more recent letters, responding to the potentially even greater level of danger at the location (caused by the narrowing of the road for a construction project), are posted below:

Alycia Santilli: "I also find Providence and Worcester Railroad's 'solution' and the lack of adequate response to this issue extremely troublesome. Like many others in the surrounding area, my husband and I cross this bridge two times per day during our bicycle commute to downtown New Haven. The signage -- besides being poorly placed -- is an outrageously insufficient and inappropriate solution. As Mr. Kurtz points out, it is impossible to dismount to cross the tracks. Dismounting would be just as hazardous -- if not more so -- as crossing the tracks."

William Kurtz: "I know you have been made aware of the many serious crashes that have taken place at your railroad crossing, and that you have so far failed to take any meaningful action about this treacherous situation, despite more-than-adequate knowledge of the hazard you have created and allowed to exist. Just two weeks ago, there was yet another crash there and yet another experienced cyclist was seriously injured and now we are told that according to Russ St. John, who is P&W's representative on the Connecticut Public Transportation Commission that a "cyclists-dismount-and-walk" sign is the solution that is "acceptable" to Providence and Worcester. Please hear me clearly when I state that your sign is not an acceptable solution to the many residents of greater New Haven who cycle across that bridge regularly. For one thing, there is nowhere to dismount. The west-bound side is currently reduced to one lane because of the Q-Bridge construction. There is neither a sidewalk nor a shoulder and traffic on that stretch regularly reaches and exceeds 50 mph. It should be clear why any so-called "solution" which calls for a streets user with all the rights of any other vehicle operator to stop moving in the middle of 50 mph traffic is unacceptable.... I eagerly await your reply outlining your rationale for this clear disregard for human life and safety."

David Streever: "I have almost crashed there--I met a police officer tonight who crashed there due to the tracks--New Havens CAO crashed there--and dozens upon dozens of cyclists have crashed there. This is quickly turning into a huge liability for you as the crashes mount up and people are talking about civil suits & lawyers. To continue to callously ignore the crashes is your option, but I think you know that you have a responsibility to make this right."

Elaine Lewinnek: "Here is the U.S. Dept of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration plan for bicycles crossing slanted railway tracks: http://www.tfhrc.gov/safety/pedbike/pubs/05085/images/fig1416.gif. It is the best solution I know of to this basic and well-known challenge of traffic engineering. Here is the full website from which I pulled that illustration, figure 14-16: http://www.tfhrc.gov/safety/pedbike/pubs/05085/chapt14.htm. I believe the reconstructed Tomlinson bridge cost $120 million. The percentage of Americans who bike to work is 0.5%. Far more Americans bicycle for exercise and pleasure and occasional commuting, but, even leaving all those other bicyclists out, if you simply spend 0.5% of your budget on bicyclist concerns, that means $60,000 for bicyclists. It is only fair."

Joe Jeffery: "Two weeks ago, I was somewhere around my 96th mile of a 100 mile ride in and around New Haven. To return to my New Haven destination from Connecticut's beautiful shoreline, my only direct route was to cross the Tomlinson Bridge. Among the many hazards on this bridge is a set or railroad tracks that cross at an angle dangerous to cylists and motorcyclists. Angled rail crossings catch thinner tires and throw cyclists. Negotiating that angled rail in summer weekend traffic was one of the most dangerous things I've done on a bike-- and I bike commute daily from New Haven to Bridgeport in all weather."

Commenters on the New Haven Indy story point out the level of danger and the need to do more to make the Tomlinson a "Complete Bridge". Though the Tomlinson, like its neighboring Q-bridge, is part of ConnDOT's billion-dollar New Haven Harbor crossing mega-project, it has very little in the way of usable bicycle or pedestrian infrastructure:

In no way am I absolving the P&W Railroad from their responsibility to implement acceptable safety measure on this crossing, but I want to point out that the miserable design of this roadway is a contributing factor. ConnDOT also has a responsibility to respond with funding to complete this street by designing and rebuilding it to include safe and accessible options for all users: pedestrians, cyclists and motor vehicles.

It is grossly unjust to spend billions of dollars on a bridge expansion project that is legally limited to motor vehicles, while leaving other users to risk their lives for access to downtown New Haven. P&W must come up with a short term solution, but in the end, the buck stops with ConnDOT.

Unfortunately [especially with the narrowing of the road from 4 lanes to 2], this isn’t just a problem for cyclists—if a cyclist flips on the tracks (highly likely, in fact has happened again just in the past week), they are likely to hit an oncoming car. That car may swerve in avoidance or surprise, striking several oncoming cars or trucks. We’re talking about the possibility of a half dozen driver deaths here, to happen in the very near future, not just the death of one or two cyclists.

Update 7/14/10: The issue of the bridge is covered in the New Haven Register. Excerpt:

Cyclists are “gravely concerned” about the area where the Providence and Worcester rail line crosses the road just before the bridge, going west toward downtown, Connecticut Bicycle-Pedestrian Advisory Board member Jason Stockman said. Bike tires are routinely stuck in the angled rail grooves and riders are injured; Stockman, who lives in New Haven, said he saw a cyclist break his thigh bone there two weeks ago. "The conventional wisdom is, there are two types of (riders): The ones who have fallen (there), and the ones who are going to,” said William Kurtz of West Haven.

Update 07/15/10: Channel 3 TV news covers the large number of protestors out today, some holding large placards reading "ConnDOT Cares Not." Despite the ongoing number of injuries, no actions have yet been taken.

Update 7/21/10: The New Haven Register continues to cover the story, highlighting yet more recent injuries at the tracks, including a report of a woman breaking her pelvis. A reply on Elm City Cycling focuses on the comments made by ConnDOT's spokesperson in the article, and the lack of progress on the issue:

The latest critics to weigh in on a strip of Route 1 where cyclists have been tripped up by an angled rail line are a surgeon who has treated more than one person hurt there and a Yale professor. Dr. Connor Telles, the orthopaedic surgery chief resident at Yale-New Haven Hospital, warned: “This is a lawsuit waiting to happen,” in a letter to state and rail line officials.

Update 10/27/10: Despite a number of meetings involving literally hundreds of hours of volunteer citizen time and the time of city and state officials, no real progress has been made on improving safety in the area.