About 30 residents attended a May 7 informational session sponsored by the state Department of Transportation (DOT) for discussion on DOT’s plans to make a variety of improvements to the Exit 11 interchange of Interstate 84 and surrounding roadways. The changes are intended to alleviate traffic backups in the often-congested area and reduce motor vehicle accidents.

Residents posed a variety of questions to DOT planners on what effects the changes would have on the area.

First Selectman Pat Llodra said that the combination of a town project planned to improve the northern end of Toddy Hill Road and the state’s Exit 11 project will significantly improve traffic flow in the area.

But road improvement planning should proceed slowly, in light of concerns that have been expressed by property owners who would be directly affected by the planned improvements, she said.

DOT Project Engineer Paul Metsack, Jr described to those attending at the Newtown High School lecture room.the Exit 11 improvement proposal

The project would make certain traffic flow improvements in the Exit 11 area at lower costs than under a previous DOT proposal for interchange improvements, he said.

The current project is estimated at $12 million to $14 million in construction costs.

The project is intended to improve the traffic capacity and the traffic flow at a key junction between the major commuter roads of I-84, Route 34 (Berkshire Road), and Route 25 (South Main Street) via State Route 490 (Wasserman Way).

The traffic problems to be addressed include heavy left-turn and right-turn traffic volumes; predominately two-lane roadways with high traffic volumes; heavy morning traffic generated by the presence of Newtown High School; poor sightlines near Toddy Hill Road; poor intersection geometries at the Exit 11 off-ramp and on-ramp and Wasserman Way; long traffic backups into adjacent intersections; the lack of pedestrian/bicyclist features in the area; and high traffic delay times.

According to DOT, the daily traffic volumes in that area are: Exit 11 on/off ramps, 25,200 vehicles; Berkshire Road, 24,400 vehicles; Wasserman Way, 20,600 vehicles; Toddy Hill Road, 7,200 vehicles, and Newtown High School, 3,800 vehicles, according to Mr Metsack.

The goals of the project are to reduce traffic delays at signalized intersections, to relieve general traffic backups and congestion; to add vehicular capacity to the roads; to improve travel safety though better motorist sight lines and better road shoulders; and to enhance pedestrian and bicyclist safety.

Construction is tentatively scheduled to start in early 2019 and be complete by 2021 or 2022, according to Mr Metsack.

Key Feature: Exit 11 Spur

A key feature of the Exit 11 improvement project would be the creation of another on-ramp for the Exit 11 interchange.

That on-ramp spur would be located on the north side of Berkshire Road, just east of the overpass above Berkshire Road which holds the existing Exit 11 on-ramp. Allowing westbound traffic on Berkshire Road to directly enter the Exit 11 interchange there would eliminate much traffic congestion in the Berkshire Road-Wasserman Way area.

The planned improvements in the Exit 11 area include road widenings, roadway realignments, the expansion of intersections, access improvements, and sight line enhancements.

Mr Metsack said that current information on the project is preliminary and is subject to change during the design phase.

The DOT plans to return to Newtown in about 18 months when the road design work is about 30 percent complete for additional public comment on the project.