West Hartford Monday Formalizes Plan For Traffic/Pedestrian Safety

Courtesy of Town of West Hartford

WEST HARTFORD, CT — Local officials Monday revealed more details on town plans to commit to an initiative aimed at eliminating deaths on West Hartford roads and sidewalks.

The announcement comes after five people were killed in three separate fatal incidents on local roads leading up to Christmas last month and a person was injured Friday, Jan. 7, after being hit by a car.

The West Hartford Town Council meets Tuesday, Jan. 10, at 7:30 p.m. at West Hartford Town Hall, 50 S. Main St., West Hartford.

West Hartford Mayor Shari G. Cantor announced Monday she will introduce a resolution at the meeting implementing what is called the "Vision Zero Initiative" in West Hartford.

Vision Zero is a strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries, while increasing safe, healthy, and equitable mobility for all, wrote town officials Monday.

“Just one traffic-related death or serious injury is too many, but this has been a truly challenging time with numerous accidents, injuries and deaths. Our goal must be to eliminate these tragedies,” said Cantor.

“Our streets and public rights of way are what hold our community together, providing connection between neighborhoods and opportunities for healthy mobility. I understand deeply that ensuring traffic safety is critical to maintaining the quality of life that makes West Hartford so special.”

The resolution will require the town manager to appoint a Vision Zero Task Force, with a Community Advisory Committee made up of community stakeholders and a technical advisory committee made up of town staff and technical experts.

The town manager will regularly make recommendations and report on progress to the West Hartford Town Council, with a final report due within one year.

West Hartford Town Manager Rick Ledwith said work to improve traffic safety has been ongoing, and the town has already completed or begun a number of street safety initiatives.

“Public safety is always a top priority, and a lot of the work done by the Vision Zero Task Force will complement initiatives the Town is already engaged in,” said Ledwith. “Our hope is to come to the town council very quickly with steps that can be taken in the short term that will have an immediate impact, things like tactical urbanism projects.

"But Vision Zero encourages us to take a human-centered approach to street design, and a major focus of the Vision Zero Task Force involve investigating longer term infrastructure projects to improve street safety.”

Tactical urbanism projects are small-scale, low-cost and temporary – a way to try out street design changes to see how they work.

Town official said traffic engineers use different types of signs, cones, barrels, paint, tape and planters to slow down cars and make streets safer.

If the temporary design achieves its aims, it can become permanent.

Ledwith said the Town has successfully engaged in a number of recent tactical urbanism projects, including the North Main Street Road Diet; redesigning side streets that intersect with Boulevard just west of West Hartford Center; and experimenting with back-in parking on LaSalle Road.

Back-in parking eliminates the need to reverse into the road when departing, which is riskier.

The town also recently engaged Stantec, a nationally recognized a traffic safety and engineering consultant, to review current conditions surrounding West Hartford Center and to recommend options to improve street design going forward.

Ledwith said the results of the Stantec study would be crucial to the work of the Vision Zero Task Force.

West Hartford Deputy Mayor Liam Sweeney applauded the initiative.

“Unfortunately, we are seeing an increase in tragic traffic incidents across Connecticut,” said Sweeney. “West Hartford must do its part, but traffic safety is an issue that crosses municipal lines. This needs to be a team effort with the state and other municipalities, and I hope we can collaborate with other communities to share best practices and coordinate efforts where possible.”

West Hartford Police Chief Vernon Riddick emphasized the need for all road users take individual responsibility for safety — including drivers, pedestrians and cyclists.

“The most difficult issue to address is the human factor. Distracted driving and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs are leading causes of traffic accidents, and not only are these activities illegal, the tragic results are 100 percent preventable,” said Riddick.

“No text message or phone call is worth taking someone’s life. At the same time, we also need pedestrians and cyclists to practice common sense – this means using crosswalks, being alert, and obeying all signs, signals and road markings.”

From Jan. 6: 'West Hartford Plans To Commit To Zero Traffic/Pedestrian Fatalities'