Improvements Proposed For Hazardous South Main Street Intersection

By Andrew Gorosko

 

The state Department of Transportation (DOT) is in the early planning stages for a partial realignment of a six-way intersection on South Main Street, where the combination of high-speed traffic and unusual road geometries have resulted in a high accident rate.

The improvement project is slated for South Main Street’s northern intersection with Peck’s Lane, where those two streets meet at two points. Prospect Drive and southern Appleblossom Lane also intersect with South Main Street there.

Most of the accidents occurring in the area involve southbound motorists on South Main Street who collide with the rear ends of other southbound motorists’ vehicles which are stopped and waiting the make left turns onto Peck’s Lane or onto Prospect Drive.

Due to the unusual intersection geometries, southbound motorists on South Main Street experience difficulty and indecision in determining where they should stop on that road in preparation to make left turns onto Peck’s Lane or Prospect Drive, contributing to the majority of the rear-ender accidents which occurred there from 1999 to 2004, according to the DOT.

Southbound motorists on South Main Street typically turn left onto southbound Peck’s Lane to reach the town/school offices at 31 Peck’s Lane and the town public works garage at 4 Turkey Hill Road. The dead-end Prospect Drive leads to Hubbell Plastics, Inc, at 14 Prospect Drive, which has about 300 employees. South Main Street (State Route 25) is the main road link between Newtown and Bridgeport.

Approximately 20,000 vehicles travel on that section of South Main Street daily, according to the DOT. The 30-foot-wide road has a 45-mph speed limit.

The DOT proposes widening South Main Street to a 32-foot width in that area. New storm water drainage structures would be installed. Extensive repaving would be done. The $1.89-million project would be covered by federal and state funds. It is designed to address safety and access concerns.

During construction, access to properties and businesses would remain open, with the majority of improvement work being done during off-peak hours, according to DOT.

In that area, Peck’s Lane intersects South Main Street at two spots which are separated by a large raised grass traffic island. Both legs of Peck’s Lane are steeply sloped, and both legs of that street are controlled by stop signs.

DOT officials recently met with people who own property near the intersection to explain plans for improving the area.

A new left-turn lane for southbound motorists on South Main Street who want to turn left onto Prospect Drive would be created.

Also, Peck’s Lane’s intersection with South Main Street would be moved several hundred feet southward, intersecting with South Main Street just north of Mathison Floors at 133 South Main Street. The new Peck’s Lane/South Main Street intersection would have flared sides on its sole Peck’s Lane leg to facilitate vehicle turns.

Police Chief Michael Kehoe said this week that the Police Commission will hear a presentation on the proposed intersection improvements at an upcoming session. The Police Commission is the town’s traffic authority. It makes traffic recommendations to the DOT.

“It’s a very convoluted intersection there” which poses “multiple issues” for motorists, Chief Kehoe said.

Improvements are needed in that area where multiple roads intersect, he said. The existing road geometries in the area present hazards for both rear-end collisions and for broadside collisions, he said.

Town Public Works Director Fred Hurley said that based on the length of the state planning process for its road work, the intersection improvements may not be completed until the end of 2012.

No traffic signal is currently included in the conceptual planning, he said.

At the recent informational session between the DOT and nearby property owners, a representative of Hubbell Plastics recommended that two sets of synchronized traffic signals be installed in the area to facilitate traffic flow.

The town, through the Housatonic Valley Council of Elected Officials (HVCEO), had proposed to the DOT that the hazardous six-way intersection be improved.