Comments
Thanks! The holes have now been patched. I guess we'll see how long the patches hold up.
The Elm St potholes have been patched. The patches even survived that slushy snow the other day.
The pothole was filled! Thanks!
Thanks! I should probably have specified that it is in the right hand lane on Chapel St, midway between High St and York St (in front of the Yale Art Gallery).
Anybody know if there is anything in particular we should be doing to prepare for the fact that tomorrow's forecast calls for rain and a high of 45 degree Fahrenheit? Is the snow all going to melt in a hurry? Are we going to have a foot of water filling the streets? Are basements going to flood?
Thanks!
My major concern with the off-ramp crosswalk is that it is also a blind curve. Drivers have only a split second between when they round the corner and when they would need to apply the brakes if a hiker or group of hikers is crossing. Anything to alert drivers that they need to pay extra attention to the crosswalk area the instant they round the corner would help.
I think you need to question your assumptions, Opinion, because they are making you look ridiculous. New Haven's streets existed for over two hundred years before the invention of the automobile. Even sleepy ol' Morris Cove originally developed as a community based around a streetcar line (which incidentally passed one block to the south on Concord Street). New Haven's streets were unpaved or paved only with cobblestones until the early 1900s. By 1896, a decade before even early automobiles arrived on the scene, cyclists, yes the bicycling precursor to AAA, lobbied the state legislature to regulate bicycle etiquette. This is the origin of Connecticut's vehicle laws. (The automobile was on nobody's mind when our moving vehicle laws were passed.) Meanwhile, it was also the cyclists who lobbied city government to pave over the old cobblestone and brick streets with smooth asfalt that would be better for cycling.
I don't blame you for thinking that New Haven's streets were built to serve the automobile. For the most part, we have gone well out of our way over the past half century to modify them to exclude all other users. It is important to recognize, however, that our streets become inhospitable only when we choose to make them that way. The fact is, anyone who runs a child off of the road is being a jerk, especially when the driver is a guest in the neighborhood and the child lives there. Speeding down a local street like this is a rude and inconsiderate thing to do. Why should we bend over backward to accommodate such behavior?
Better yet, if I were in your shoes, I would make a pair of bright yellow plywood sandwich boards that say "Welcome to our street. Kids play here. Please drive slowly." and prop them up on the side of the road at either end of the street. The inward facing sides could say something like "Thanks for driving slowly! Y'all come back now :)" It would add some flair to your block, you wouldn't have to wait for anything, and best of all, I really do think it could work. Let me know if you'd like any tips on constructing plywood sandwich boards (basically, you take two pieces of plywood, paint them, attach them with a pair of hinges, drill two holes in the bottom of each side, and run a piece of rope through the holes to keep it from opening too far.)
You know, it is possible to prevent cut-through traffic with a pretty simple traffic control device. It's called a "half closure." The city installed one at the intersection of Fredrick and Fowler in the Amity section of Westville. In that case, it made the block of Fowler between Fairfield and Fredrick two-way for local traffic, but one-way for through traffic. It was a simple and cheap version (a Do Not Enter sign placed in the middle of the street), but they can be designed to be much more attractive (by instead blocking the lane with a planted area, for example).
Speed humps can also be reasonably effective at discouraging, or at least slowing down, cut-through traffic, especially if paired with other traffic calming enhancements. I think this would be worth asking your alder person about. Surely the cut-through traffic creates all sorts of problems other than threatening children and adults playing on your street.
You have my sympathies and I wish you the best of luck in discouraging cut-through traffic and in calming the traffic on your street. Let me know if your alder person doesn't understand traffic calming or if I can be of assistance in any other way.
Actually, I think the issue is that people are using Ley St as a cut-through route. That is a serious issue that is likely a major nuisance to people who live there. The solution is not for the residents of Ley St to forfeit the public space they have claimed; the solution is for through traffic to not drive down Ley St. Like I said, if you need to get somewhere, why don't you just take Burr St?
I'm sorry that the hoop fell over. Perhaps they should put water in the base to keep it upright.
More generally, however, local streets are our most important public space. If this were on a major arterial, that would be one matter, but since this is a local street, for use by local residents who live on the block to access their homes, the movement of through automobile traffic should not be the priority. If you need to get someplace not on that block, just take Burr Street. If you are using Ley Street as a cut-through route, you are the problem, not the people who live there.
http://www.streetfilms.org/revisiting-donald-appleyards-livable-streets/
I bicycle past basketball hoops on the street in Hamden all the time and I don't mind at all because I recognize that I am the visitor/guest on those streets and that I should behave myself accordingly.
If any action should be taken, it should be to close the street to through traffic and keep it open for local access only.
It was patched yesterday. Thanks for the quick response! I guess we'll see how long the patch holds.
Sweet! I can't wait to have a look!
Awesome! Thanks!
I would be hesitant to make that argument. Connecticut does not have a side path law, so it would still be perfectly legal to bike with traffic, and some people might prefer to.
As for the right turns, that's a good point. I suppose the assumption with the proposal as it currently stands is that you would have to merge over to the right-hand lane, which I suppose is not ideal. Anyone know what Chicago and New York do?
I suppose it would be nice to get an update from the city. Last I heard, they had hired Milone & MacBroom to look into the possibility of a two-way cycle track on Water St, but that was over a year ago at this point.
This intersection falls within ward 21. The alderperson for ward 21 is Brenda Foskey-Cyrus, who lives over on Sherman Parkway. You can reach her by emailing Ward21@newhavenct.net
Rather than specifically recommending stop signs or speed humps, I would recommend simply alerting Ms. Fosky-Cyrus to the details of any collisions or close calls you have witnessed at this intersection and explain that you would like her assistance in bringing this to the attention of the relevant authorities (the analysis of traffic safety conditions falls under the jurisdiction of the Transportation, Traffic & Parking Department; the design and construction of traffic calming measures falls under the purview of the city Engineering Department). Ms. Fosky-Cyrus will also be able to help submit a Complete Streets project request form for this intersection if it appears that traffic calming is called for.
Lastly, please continue to use SeeClickFix to document and record specific collisions, near-collisions, and unsafe conditions that you witness at this intersection. If you know other people who have witnessed collisions or other events at this intersection, you should also invite them to share what they have seen using this website.
(And to explain who I am, I am a volunteer advocate for better-designed streets in New Haven).
Would you describe this as a situation where drivers are unable to see the existing stop signs, or is there a separate, more fundamental issue at work? Perhaps:
a) too much though traffic takes Thompson on the way to Dixwell when it should be using Division
OR
b) traffic volumes on Thompson are appropriate, but a small number of drivers are going much too fast and do not bother to fully stop at the stop sign
OR
c) both traffic volumes and speeds on Thompson are appropriate; the issue is either lack of visibility at the intersection or excessive speeds on Shelton.
If you answered yes to at least one of these questions, you don't need more stop signs; you need traffic calming. Specifically,
if you answered yes to a), I would recommend a half closure on Thompson at Newhall St to close Thompson to through traffic (local traffic could access Thompson from Shelton);
if you answered yes to b), I would recommend speed humps on Thompson;
and if you answered yes to c), I would recommend curb extensions on Shelton at Thompson to slow traffic on Shelton, improve visibility, and reduce the crossing distance.
To move this request forward, you, or someone else, must fill out a Complete Streets Request Form: http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/Engineering/completestreets.asp and submit it to the New Haven Engineering Department.
Thanks for your interest in improving the safety of our town's streets!
I also live on Dwight St and have found it to be a pretty nice neighborhood, especially during the summertime when we are able to meet our neighbors at Rainbow Park. My house is probably one of the crummier looking houses when viewed from the front. I have grand plans for how to plant it up, remediate for lead, and improve drainage, but I don't know how much I can afford to personally spend on the project and I'm too shy to ask my landlord if he would be interested in chipping in. This is why I'm trying to see if there would be interest in starting a Community Greenspace group to fix up all of the crummy-looking front yards on our street.
As for drainage at 222 Dwight, I have been experimenting with how to build rain gardens that incorporate small dry wells to infiltrate runoff. I plan to build a small one in my front yard soon (I live in the blue house across the street from you, Mr. Martsen). If it works well, and if we could get the permission of the landlord at 222 Dwight, I'd be willing to build one there, too, especially if someone would be willing to volunteer their car or truck to go pick up a bunch of round stones and wood chips with me.
Regardless of what type of line it is, it's generally a good idea to steer clear following storms in case a damaged high-voltage line has fallen into and electrified the line in question. This is especially true if there are power outages in the area. If you think this line may be a hazard, I would advise that you call it in to UI at 1-800-722-5584.