Traffic Calming in Hamden

By Ann DeMatteo, Register Staff adematteo@nhregister.com / Twitter: @annddematteo HAMDEN — The town, in cooperation with residents, is moving ahead with “traffic calming.” A plan to improve east-west traffic flow in the Spring Glen and Whitneyville neighborhoods has been completed, and other “calming” options are being pursued. Some roads already have been painted with directional lines and symbols, aimed at getting traffic to slow down, said Curt Balzano Leng, the town’s chief administrative officer. “Throughout Spring Glen and Whitneyville, we will do our best to implement paint-only and in-street signage, stop bars and crosswalks,” keeping costs down, Leng said. A steering committee, made up of town officials and civic association representatives, has reviewed the east-west transportation study by Fitzgerald & Halliday Inc. and some recommendations will be implemented, Leng said. For example, a small traffic circle will be installed at Connolly Parkway, Thornton and Elgin streets to help prevent drivers from running stop signs. Traffic calming has been a focus in the administration of Mayor Scott D. Jackson, as requested by residents. The South Central Regional Council of Governments paid $40,000 for the east-west study. It recommends spending more than $1 million over five years on traffic improvements. Plans to begin a traffic study of the Hamden Plains and Wintergreen Avenue area are under way, according to COG Executive Director Carl Amento. Once a company is hired to perform the study, it will run from September 2012 to June 2013, he said. The town will pay $15,000 for a study of the West Woods neighborhood. The east-west study recommends a variety of traffic-calming methods, most of which are inexpensive, Amento said. Some can be temporary, to determine their effectiveness, before proceeding. For instance, rubber humps can be used before pavement humps are installed. All are intended to get drivers to be more attentive and slow down, Amento said. Francisco Gomes of Fitzgerald & Halliday presented the east-west transportation study at Miller Library Senior Hall. Hamden has limited east-west connectivity, the report notes. Traffic is increasing along those routes as drivers try to avoid north-south congestion, it says. Roads studied were Ardmore, Armory, Augur, Elgin, Haverford, Mather, Treadwell, Waite, Putnam and Connolly Parkway. Woodlawn Street residents, irritated that their street wasn’t included, were at the meeting. They said it didn’t make sense to exclude Woodlawn because it connects to Whitney Avenue and has no stop signs. “Speeding is bad. Our stretch is way longer. How could they not see that?” asked Jan Hagens. Officials have said that just because Woodlawn wasn’t included doesn’t mean it won’t get improvements. “It’s important to understand this isn’t the final chapter. It’s the prologue, a jumping off point. It doesn’t mean you’re not eligible for traffic calming,” said Julie Smith, deputy chief administrative officer. Hagens maintained, however, that “an entire neighborhood needs to be looked at in a systematic, wholistic way so ... street is not pitted against street.” Eileen M. O’Neill, a Gordon Street resident affiliated with civic associations and the townwide steering committee, said she will attend a Woodlawn meeting and “get them into the game.” It will be Saturday at the home of Carol Cheney. O’Neill said she doesn’t like the consultant’s proposal for a “T” intersection at Waite and Mather streets. The report says that would simplify the intersection, reduce speeds and provide space for sidewalks. “My dream is to make it a park-recreation setting. I don’t know if my dreams will come true, but it’s a treasure to be able to walk along Lake Whitney.”