A Swampscott Call To 'Stop' In The Name Of Safety

SWAMPSCOTT, MA — Swampscott officials began the school year asking for commuters and residents to "Slow Down For School" around the area of the reconfigured elementary schools.

Now they want to put a stop to more of a long-term issue on and near Pine Street.

The Swampscott Select Board on Wednesday approved the placement of a stop sign on Plymouth Avenue with the expectation that more stop signs are likely coming to Pine Street — proposed at Erie and Superior — before long.

The Select Board tabled that part of the Traffic Study Committee's recommendation pending a police review of where the safest and most effective stop signs would be on that street.

"There is no shortage of calls to the Swampscott Police Department. Period. Hard Stop. About speeding," Select Board member Peter Spellios said, "about issues in the neighborhood.

"This is not a one-year problem. This is a decades problem for the residents of that neighborhood."

Just hours later on Thursday, the Swampscott Police Department said the Department of Public Works has "been busy installing new STOP signs around town."

The newest sign location is at Plymouth Avenue and Plymouth Lane.

"Please pay close attention to our roads," police said, directing concerns or questions about the new signs to Officer Jon Loyte at jloyte@swampscottpolice.com.

One concern raised about the new stop signs was enforcement. Select Board member MaryEllen Fletcher suggested a larger police presence in the area and for officers to "write some tickets."

Spellios said that something substantial and responsive to repeated neighbor concerns must be done.

"In the absence of someone coming up with another way to control speeding in what is clearly a pass-through street (the stop signs are necessary)," he said, noting that even the shuttle buses to the commuter rail station "go down Pine Street at a high speed, no question."

Swampscott police recently said they will be "heavily patrolling" Humphrey Street along the waterfront in the upcoming weeks and "strictly enforcing" the 25 mph speed limit through a pedestrian and intoxicated driving enforcement grant that will allow for extra patrols.

Swampscott police, fire, schools and town officials also launched the "Slow Down For School" campaign with an increased police presence and enforcement of speeding, distracted driving and crosswalk violations near the temporary Blaney School and Hadley School.

The new traffic pattern near the schools, which has been in place for two weeks, can be seen here.

Officials are also soliciting help from neighbors, parent-teacher organizations and commuters to be the "eyes and ears" for any safety concerns and to contact the police department with any issues that arise.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)