Putting To Rest (Again)

And Old ‘New Idea’

To the Editor:

Every four years it seems someone brings up the “new idea” to put traffic lights on the flagpole. It kicks around for a short while, then the facts emerge: a traffic light creates a starting and stopping safety hazard because of the slope and pitch of Main Street in snow and ice; creates impossibly long cueing problems for nearby businesses and homeowners; creates a near impossibility for cars on West Street to turn left onto Main Street; and creates unreasonable noise and pollution from braking trucks traveling between Currituck and Church Hill, and from The Inn at Newtown to the flagpole.

Traffic lights don’t change the fact that the intersection still includes the flagpole and the Newtown Meeting House and five-way traffic. These are the simple truths of why the State of Connecticut refuses to put traffic lights on the flagpole, and why even the Vollmer Group with its monstrosity of a travel path proposal that suggested taking significant portions of private property didn’t include the recommendation of traffic lights.

Contrary to scuttlebutt, the flagpole is not one of the more dangerous intersections of Newtown. Church Hill Road, particularly around Exit 10 is the most dangerous road area of Newtown. The GIS and police have categorized road areas and intersections at 4–20 accidents per year. Here is a list of some others in the same category as the flagpole (but with far less traffic making them more risky): Currituck, Hawleyville, and Obtuse Roads; Hawleyville and Exit 9; Hawleyville and Mt. Pleasant; Mt Pleasant and Old Bethel; Hanover and Papoose Drive; Currituck and Main Street; Church Hill and Queen Street; Church Hill and The Boulevard; Church Hill and Exit 10; Church Hill and Walnut Tree Hill Road; Church Hill and Riverside Road; Main and Glover; Main and Elizabeth Street; Main and Wasserman Way; Main and Peck’s Lane; Main and Huntington Road; Main and Bryan Lane; Main and Cold Spring Road; Main and Botsford Hill; Route 302 and Old Hawleyville; Route 302 and Jacklin Road; Wasserman Way and Exit 11; Wasserman Way and Route 34.

The late Paul Smith, former owner of The Newtown Bee, used to comment that people were often quick to appreciate the fine rural and historic aspects of Newtown, then too eager to change it to what it was from whence they moved. Well, the flagpole and intersection have been here far longer than anyone living in this town. Traffic lights are not advantageous, but create increased traffic dangers and detract from the historic livability of the village.

Of good news, the police car and police enforcement is working! We don’t live on the outskirts of town but live on Main Street and travel the flagpole area 20–30 times per day. When a car or police officer is there, traffic slows and there is no passing on the right. We encourage such continued police practices.

Very truly yours,

James O. Gaston

Borough Warden

18 Main Street, Newtown                                                June 23, 2009