By AUBREY HAWKE
Waltham Times Contributing Writer
The city and residents are considering proposals to reduce the volume of traffic cutting through West End neighborhoods.
The proposals, which include both short-term fixes and long-term solutions, came from BSC Group, a traffic consultancy hired by the city to study traffic issues in the West End.
BSC Group presented its findings to 40-plus residents and city officials at a Dec. 12 meeting.
Findings of the traffic study
BSC Group drew several conclusions from its study of traffic in the West End, noting that the most observed cut-through was westbound, both in the morning and evening, and that cut-through traffic enters the neighborhood along South Street north of the Charles River to make its way to I-95.
BSC Group said the study found that traffic backups at the intersections of Prospect Street with Main Street as well as at South Street and Weston Street are the main cause of the cut-through traffic.
Solutions offered
Based on the findings of its traffic study, BSC Group presented several potential short-term fixes and some long-term solutions.
The short-term solution recommendations are
- time-of-day access restriction at South Street and Bedford Street;
- a speed feedback sign and/or speed hump/cushion along Villa Street between Cedarwood Avenue and Summit Avenue;
- improved sight lines at the four-way stop intersection of Bedford Street at Boynton Street as well as possibly a new raised intersection;
- and the installation of speed cushions along Cabot Street and Fiske Avenue or a raised intersection where these roadways meet Winthrop Street.
Officials also presented long-term solution recommendations, which propose
- improving the Main and Prospect Street intersection as well as the intersection where Main, Weston and South streets meet.
- Consider converting Bedford Street and Winthrop Street from two-way to one-way streets between Boynton Street and South Street.
Residents voice comments and concerns
Several members of the public voiced their opinions and concerns about traffic in the neighborhood and potential solutions to it.
Some residents spoke in opposition to the idea of adding signs limiting hours of entry, saying such restrictions would create difficulties for neighborhood residents making their own commutes.
Another question raised by a resident was if the larger “artery” streets – namely Main Street and Weston Street – could handle the full amount of traffic that would flow through them if commuters were successfully rerouted from the West End cut-throughs.
Feedback gathered from residents at Thursday’s meeting, as well as comments shared at a prior meeting in June, will be incorporated into the study before the issue goes to Waltham’s Traffic Commission for further review.
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