Planners Take Aim At The Region’s Worst Traffic Problems

By Andrew Gorosko

A section of Church Hill Road west of Interstate-84 has the highest incidence of motor vehicle accidents among 101 high-hazard accident areas along state roads in the 10-town Housatonic Valley planning region, according to a regional planner.

Jonathan Chew, executive director of the Housatonic Valley Council of Elected Officials (HVCEO), said Monday traffic studies show that the section of Church Hill Road in the vicinity of Commerce Road and Edmond Road is the most accident prone in the region.

Mr Chew notes that Newtown has only two high-hazard accident areas among the 101 areas throughout the region. Both of those areas are on Church Hill Road.

The high accident rate there stems from a very large number of vehicle turning movements made within relatively small areas due to the layout of streets and the driveways which lead to those streets. 

In its regional transportation plan, the HVCEO recommends to the state Department of Transportation (DOT) a series a measures to alleviate traffic problems and accidents along Church Hill Road.

Besides Newtown, the Housatonic Valley region includes New Milford, New Fairfield, Danbury, Brookfield, Bethel, Bridgewater, Sherman, Ridgefield, and Redding.

 Mr Chew spoke at a transportation forum at Newtown High School Monday night sponsored by the Newtown Property Owners Association. About 30 people attended.

As the region’s transportation planning agency, the HVCEO maintains a regional transportation plan that recommends various improvements to enhance traffic flow and motorist safety.

Among those priorities is improving Interstate 84. Improvements would include widening I-84 from four to six lanes between the Brookfield town line and the Southbury town line and upgrading the interchanges at Exits 9, 10, and 11, in accordance with a DOT I-84 improvement plan.

 A high priority is improving traffic flow at Exit 11 by providing a new on-ramp from Route 34 to Exit 11, according to HVCEO. Mr Chew has said that creating a new on-ramp to the Exit 11 interchange would be an effective way to reduce the number of left turns which are made on state and local roads in that area, thus reducing traffic congestion.

The DOT has proposed a $268 million I-84 improvement project between the Housatonic River and the New York State line. Short-term improvements are planned through 2005. Medium-term work is projected for the period between 2005 and 2010. Long-term improvements are projected for 2010 and beyond. Widening I-84 is listed as a long-term improvement.

The timing of the I-84 improvement work is not clear because the DOT must address a wide range of planned transportation improvements throughout the state, of which the I-84 project is one element, according to DOT.

Making I-84 improvements in Danbury is expected to be the DOT’s first priority among the many improvements proposed for the 18.8-mile long stretch of highway. Newtown may be one of the last places in the region to have its three I-84 interchanges modernized.

Most of the major changes to I-84 are still years away, according to William Messner, a DOT transportation planning administrator.

During the next few years, some relatively minor safety improvements will be made to I-84, with major physical improvements made in the following years, he said.

Mr Messner said the DOT has considered providing commuter rail service in Newtown, but due to the town’s relatively sparse development, it does not make economic sense to provide such a rail service.

The DOT planner suggested that Newtown commuters use ride-sharing as a practical way to reduce the number of vehicles traveling on roads.

Mr Messner told residents at the forum that although the region is developing somewhat faster than other parts of the state, heavy traffic and congestion are widespread problems in Connecticut.

 

HVCEO Recommendations

The HVCEO’s regional transportation plan includes a number of transportation improvement recommendations for Newtown.

The plan recommends that the traffic capacity of a section of Hawleyville Road near Exit 9 of I-84 in Hawleyville be increased through widening, as warranted by adjacent development. A detailed 1997 transportation planning study, which was performed by HVCEO and endorsed by the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z), includes that Hawleyville Road widening recommendation.

HVCEO also recommends that the Housatonic Railroad’s rail overpass above Church Hill be raised to provide greater clearance for tall vehicles. Many truckers hauling cargo trailers have collided with the low-clearance overpass over the years. The DOT has plans to raise the overpass.

Also, HVCEO recommends that the DOT implement a series of “spot safety improvements,” as needed, along South Main Street from the Monroe town line to Mile Hill Road.

The planning agency also wants to have a traffic signal installed at the hazardous intersection of Currituck Road, Hawleyville Road, and Obtuse Road.

The agency also recommends that the state construct a westbound climbing lane on Route 34 between Bradley Lane and Great Ring Road to improve traffic flow in that area, which is reduced when heavy trucks slowly climb that section of Route 34.

Mr Chew said if residents do not like HVCEO’s transportation improvement priorities for Newtown, they should inform the first selectman of their preferences and recommend their priorities. The chief elected officials of the 10 towns in the region form the HVCEO.