money Can this busy — and dangerous — Brockton intersection be fixed? MassDOT has a solution
BROCKTON – The mix of people driving to work, bikers with no lanes to bike, pedestrians trying to find a safe space to cross the street, and the lack of space needed for an emergency vehicle to transport a patient or to reach one without creating a bottleneck in traffic – this is a normal busy day at the intersection of Cary, Lyman and Centre streets (also known as Route 123).
It's safe to say the intersection is extremely congested.
For the last four years, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the city of Brockton have been working together to come up with possible improvements to the intersection, and at a April 26 public hearing with city, state and regional organizations, MassDOT announced a solution.
Jon Freeman, project manager and traffic engineer for MassDOT, listed the following proposed solutions to relieve congestion:
left-turn lanes on Centre Street,
ADA-compliant sidewalks,
proposed bike lanes,
driveway openings located to discourage 'cut-through traffic,'
emergency vehicle pre-emption,
mast arms for improved visibility,
compliant curb ramps,
increased width for turning vehicles,
overhead street lighting
At the point of the intersection where Cary Street becomes Lyman Street, there is low traffic signal visibility.
"Currently, there is a higher risk of head-on collisions," Freeman continued.
The $2,135,071 project to improve the intersection for pedestrians, cyclists and those operating motor vehicles – including first responders – is 90% federally funded and 10% state funded.
"This is a very important project for the city, as this is a very busy area," said William McNulty, principal transportation planner for the Old Colony Planning Council. "OCPC is very supportive and grateful that this project is moving forward."
A dangerous crash location
In recent years, the intersection has been listed on MassDOT's Top 200 crash locations in the state because of its high congestion, inadequate lighting, limited signal visibility, lack of traffic signal pre-emption, and challenging pedestrian walkways that are currently an "obstacle for mobility challenged pedestrians," Freeman said.
MassDOT also weighed five alternatives; however, the final option they chose would improve safety considerably more than the other potential solutions.
"During peak traffic, the addition of left-turn lanes reduces accidents by 19%, the addition of protected left turns reduces accidents by 6%, a protected or permissive left turn (coming from the westbound) reduces accidents by 1%, and the addition with the highest rate of accident reductions at 71% is the installation of mast arms," Freeman continued. A mast arm is used to place traffic signals above the street for maximum visibility
Impact on businesses in the area
Since April 2018, the city and MassDOT have been working on coming up with viable solutions to fix the intersection. Since that time, they have also reached out to local businesses including the MetroPCS, CVS, Eastside Market, and Supreme House of Pizza and Subs, which are located at each of the four points of the intersection, regarding the developments that will be made.
"According to Brockton's and Massachusetts' right-of-way laws, documents will be provided to businesses so that they understand the changes that will be coming," said Craig Sheehan, an expert on the impact construction will have on properties in the surrounding area.
"The city of Brockton and MassDOT are responsible in public land design amendments," he continued.
Freeman also pointed out that MassDOT went through checklists to verify that the improvements made to this intersection would not cause any harmful environmental, cultural resource or community impacts. By July 2021, it had been established that the improvements would not have harmful effects on any of these three topics.
According to MassDOT representatives, there will be two phases of this improvement project.
Phase one is intended to take 18 months, and it will be for roadway widening and sidewalk construction. Phase two is intended to be much quicker – one week long – to mill and pave the roadway.
"Message boards will be posted in the area 14 days before the start of construction," Freeman added.
Construction on the project will start in the spring of 2024.
More information can be found on MassDOT's information page here: https://www.mass.gov/event/brockton-intersection-improvements-at-centre-street-route-123-cary-street-and-lyman-street-2022-04-26t190000-0400-2022-04-26t200000-0400
Any comments and concerns about the project? Email MassDOTProjectManagement@dot.state.ma.us
This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: MassDOT: Cary, Lyman and Centre Street intersection to improve
