Remember that girl or guy back in high school that pretty much everyone took for granted until he or she started seeing the superstar athlete, cheerleader or whoever it was that you and your friends only aspired to hang out with?
This week, Newton’s Robert Korf — developer of the Washington Place project who controls other parcels along Washington Street and seeks to create something bold at Riverside Station — unveiled a fascinating new vision for Kenmore Square with world renowned urban designer Jeff Speck, the Globe reports.
I’m a big Jeff Speck fan and I really like both his vision and the clear way it is explained.
And as someone who spent a great deal of his 20s in Kenmore Square (and carless), it’s easy to relate to the pedestrian challenges and be excited about finding a solution.
Looks good. Maybe Messrs. Speck and Korf can next tackle Newton’s Circle of Death (taking the “Death” out of the Circle).
That’s actually a fascinating suggestion Jim.
Greg, there IS an easy and very cheap solution at Newton Corner (if Speck and Korf don’t offer structural/physical solutions) — at least to reduce the “death” moniker: simply convert the pedestrian crossing traffic lights currently at the south and north sides of the Gateway Center/Crown Plaza Hotel complex to full regular traffic lights. I’ll verify that solution as an “expert”, having been a regular navigator there (both in car and by foot) for over 40 years.
This city is overrun with traffic lights. Adding them at the circle would be a traffic nightmare
Tony, yes the cost is that it slows traffic somewhat (with tiny expenditure of money); but the benefit, which IMHO far outweighs that, rids the moniker “circle of death”.
Drivers required to turn right from northbound Centre Street onto eastbound fast and continuing heavy traffic Washington Street regularly face a more than daunting task to enter, yet alone merge, and yet alone cross to the far left lane — in very minimal distance — prerequisite to overpassing the Turnpike. And those same drivers, having overpassed the Turnpike when not entering the westbound Turnpike and electing to continue on the “circle of death’s” Washington Street westbound in order to prepare to depart from the “circle of death”, regularly face a more than daunting task endeavoring to negotiate to the right lanes to continue west on Washington Street, having merged with heavy and fast traffic from drivers exiting the Turnpike from the East, coupled with drivers from southbound Galen Street. And finally, those drivers electing to stay left, continue on the “circle” and negotiate to the far right lane to proceed south on Centre Street, frequently being a daunting task as they merge with eastbound Turnpike exiting drivers, would be relived by the traffic light’s slowing effect. The only relief for the whole “circle” is when the two pedestrian lights have a right of way. A regularized sequencing of those lights (not dependent on the occasional pedestrian) would solve the problem.
Over the summer I found myself trying to cross the circle of death by pushing the button for the traffic light near Centre Street. I pushed the button, the light turned red, and two cars in the lanes closest to Centre Street stopped. Just as I was about to step out into the lane, a car came flying through the light at a high rate of speed (my impression was that it was well over 30mph… but I did not have a speed gun on me) without slowing down at all.
This happened twice on the same trip through the circle.
“Date”?! More like date rape, Greg. Speaking of your punk-rock, Kenmore-hangin’ self from back in the day, I daresay he’d be mortified to see what he turned into 🙁