Updated: Boston.com has an updated story, with more info on the pedestrians and drivers. Notably free of driver-less zombie cars. Also quotes yours truly.
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Within a little over an hour yesterday, according to the Globe, drivers hit two 90-year-old pedestrians in the same intersection in Newton Centre.
A simple question: why isn’t crossing Centre Street at Pleasant Street essentially risk-free for pedestrians? Shouldn’t it be?
I’m nearly certain that there is a pedestrian signal planned near the intersection (funded from the Panera special permit). And, there may already be plans for a pedestrian bumpout. (I’ll update when I know more.)
Pedestrian safety needs to be the highest priority in our village centers, even if it means slowing traffic to a crawl.
That’s a tough cross walk alright. I’ve seen many close calls there. In large part it’s because a pedestrian has to navigate across four active lanes, plus contend with traffic making a right turn out of Pleasant onto Centre. The solution is to install a pedestrian walk signal, and remove the closest parking space to the crosswalk on both sides of Centre Street. Removal of those parking spaces would improve the line of sight drivers have of pedestrians as they prepare to cross.
Those will both help, definitely. Removing those parking spaces will only help, however, if people stop parking – when they are not in spaces – just to “run in quickly” to stores. It amazes me how many people feel the need to park directly in front of CVS, and on the cross walk. And they never seem to get cited.
While I’m at the venting here, do people realize that ONE WAY means ONE WAY, even if they are only entering or exiting a parking lot?? The lot behind CVS is notorious for this – but then again it has been since I was a kid….! Guess that won’t change, huh?
Curb extensions will make sure nobody parks adjacent to crosswalks.
Better still, removing two lanes of traffic would make it safer to negotiate as a motorist and safer to cross as a pedestrian. Giving that initial section of Langley Road by the Newton Centre Green a road diet would also help, indirectly.
This particular crossing area has multiple interdependencies that make it difficult to create a solution that does not have an unintended negative consequence. I hope really deep thought goes into it if it is addressed. It took about 3-4 years for them to return the delayed light back on at the Beacon/Langley “let’s all block the intersection” party and they did not re-implement it properly, just a band-aid that created other issues, although the delayed light alone is an improvement overall.
Agreed. Everything has consequences. The Centre/Beacon/Langley intersection is also about to be reconfigured next year, so now’s the time to get it right. (The Beacon/Langley signal is also scheduled for work)