Police Commission OKs Speed Bumps For Queen Street

By Andrew Gorosko

In response to continuing complaints from Queen Street area residents that high traffic speeds on Queen Street create dangerous conditions for pedestrians, Police Commission members this week approved installing broad speed bumps, known as speed tables, on the southern section of that road to deter speeding.

Following lengthy discussion at a February 7 Police Commission session, panel members agreed to have the town install two, and potentially three, temporary speed tables on the street to hold down travel speeds. The Police Commission also is the local traffic authority.

The speed tables would be installed at as-yet unspecified locations on the southern section of the street lying between its intersections with Glover Avenue and Mile Hill Road. The mile-long Queen Street, which links Church Hill Road to Mile Hill Road, carries about 6,000 vehicles daily.

In their February 7 action, Police Commission members endorsed an April 2007 action of the Police Commission that had called for the installation of three speed tables on southern Queen Street, which were never installed. That 2007 action was based on recommendations made in an August 2006 traffic planning study of the Queen Street area.

If temporary speed tables prove to be beneficial, permanent speed tables might be installed.

Police Commission member James Viadero observed that high traffic speeds on Queen Street make for “brutal” conditions. Mr Viadero said that some of the biggest speeding violators on the street appear to parents speaking on handheld cellphones who are driving fast while transporting their children to schools in the area.

Mr Viadero urged that police take immediate enforcement action to curb such violations.

Commission member Brian Budd said that the speeding problem on southern Queen Street has gone on for too long. He recommended that temporary speed tables initially be installed to gauge such devices’ effectiveness.

Mr Viadero said he expects that the presence of speed tables on Queen Street would likely displace traffic from that road to the parallel South Main Street.

In urging that steps be taken to improve conditions on Queen Street, commission member Joel Faxon said, “Something needs to be done before someone gets killed” due to an auto accident.

“I don’t think we can afford to wait too long,” said Police Commission Chairman Paul Mangiafico. The presence of speed tables causes motorists to cut their travel speed, he said.

Police Chief Michael Kehoe said that police will review which southern Queen Street locations would be the best places to install speed tables. The town has on hand many of the parts required for two speed tables. 

Chief Kehoe said he would ask Fred Hurley, the town public works director, to attend the March 6 Police Commission session to discuss the speed table issue. The public works department would be the agency to install speed tables.

Mr Hurley said February 8 that installing temporary speed tables allows for testing to gauge the effectiveness of such devices before any permanent speed tables would be installed.

Following a past test period with temporary speed tables on Key Rock Road, the town later installed permanent speed tables there to hold down traffic speeds. Key Rock Road links Sugar Street to Poverty Hollow Road.

Mr Hurley said it is yet unclear where exactly on southern Queen Street speed tables would be the most effective. Due to its relatively high traffic volume, Queen Street does not meet the standard criteria for the placement of speed tables, he said.

In designing a speed table system for that street, Police Commission members would need to establish a “target speed” for motorists on that road, he said.

Mr Hurley said he expects that temporary speed tables could be installed there in April or May.

Mr Hurley suggested that Police Commission members may want to install dual-function devices that combine the features of a speed table and a “raised crosswalk.”

In the past, the town installed such dual-function devices on Glover Avenue, near its intersection with Meadow Road, and also on northern Queen Street, near its intersection with Lorraine Drive. Both devices were temporary and were later removed. They were not replaced by permanent devices.

Traffic Data

To familiarize Police Commission members with Queen Street area traffic issues, Chief Kehoe prepared a voluminous packet of information for them on the topic dating back a decade. Three of the five commission members were newly elected last November.

During a public comment section at the February 7 meeting, resident Erin Masotta of 10 Grand Place told commission members there have been adverse incidents stemming from Queen Street traffic problems.

“It’s unbelievable to me how dangerous it is. It’s very, very dangerous,” she said.

Ms Masotta said that she was waiting for her son’s school bus to arrive on December 9. The bus then stopped with its red warning lights flashing, after which an auto illegally passed by the stopped bus, making for an upsetting situation, she said.

Resident Frank Servidio of 25 Castle Meadow Road told commission members that bad driving habits are a widespread problem, with tailgating being common.

“It used to be pleasurable to drive,” he said. “People have such disrespect for the law,” he added. “It’s just upsetting,” he said.

People should be more respectful while driving, Mr Mangiafico said.