Personally, I am grateful for the new Rt 177/Old Sudbury Rd crossing, which does not include a speed table but has pedestrian warning lights and a painted crosswalk. Many of us in this area use the crossing to get to nearby trails and farms.
I would love to see more painted crosswalks on 117, Lincoln Rd, and Bedford Rd. I assume these would be less costly than speed tables. Drivers, in my experience, mostly pay attention to such crosswalks. Traffic calming (reducing speeds) is an extremely common request. Speed tables are one method of traffic calming. You can see the Federal Highway Administration specification here:
Safety improvements at that crosswalk were requested by the neighborhood in response to incidents.
Margaret Who is funding the proposed traffic table scheduled for installation this spring? It is extremely difficult for residents to track decisions being made across multiple boards, each operating on separate 5–10 year planning timelines. I believe many residents will be genuinely surprised when a traffic table appears, as this is not something the community has asked for or supported. If residents are consistently requesting sidewalks next to roadways, why are limited funds- even grant funds- being allocated to traffic tables and bike lanes instead of addressing those clearly stated priorities? Sarah Postlethwait
The survey was part of a continuous feedback process. We have the bicycle and pedestrian master plan, developed over several years with multiple neighborhood and public outreach meetings, we present at state of the town, and we send out surveys. We obviously can’t update a master plan very often but we can “check in” with the town through these lighter mechanisms to make sure there have been no major changes. The question was not so much about crosswalk design on 117. It is impeccable.
The question raised was the rational for location-the general policy to guide such decisions, and the advisability of using under 100 citizen response to a survey to guide tax investments in public safety and roadway questions.
The town’s five year plan is available on the Transportation Coalition website:
The town’s engineering consultants designed the crosswalk - all infrastructure improvements are professionally designed. Site lines determined the exact location of the new crosswalk as they do all crosswalks.
Margaret
Past road projects were informed by professional guidance, standards and research.I am surprised to find that a survey response by under 100 residents seems to now guide decisions.
The 117/Old Sudbury Rd. crosswalk is beautifully executed. However, it leads to a narrow, busy road (Old Sudbury Rd.) with no shoulder, no path, no sidewalk..
When the Roadway and Traffic Committee (the RTC) was formed, clear guidelines and standards were established for all such decisions. Crosswalk locations were determined to be safest and most appropriate where site lines were clear and the crosswalk connect paths and/or trials.
It would be instructive to have the Transportation Coalition share the rational developed through guidance documents and professional reports that direct the expenditure of tax dollars on these projects.
“The crosswalk by town hall has new, hopefully more visible signs. It will be upgraded to a speed table in the spring, once the water main patches have settled. The speed table will give drivers, pedestrians, and Public Safety experience with this new traffic calming measure. We will then consider whether speed tables are well suited to other crosswalks in town.”
I am genuinely struggling to understand why a traffic table is being presented as the preferred solution for Lincoln Road, particularly given its well-documented drawbacks and the availability of safer, more effective alternatives. Traffic tables carry significant and foreseeable downsides. They can delay emergency response vehicles, create safety hazards for motorcyclists due to abrupt elevation changes, and cause damage to vehicle suspensions, undercarriages, and front splitters—especially once the Table has a few seasons of New England weather has left it in less than optimal condition. Is the Town prepared to accept liability for vehicle damage caused by this installation? If not, why is a measure with such predictable consequences being advanced? Moreover, a single traffic table does nothing to meaningfully reduce overall vehicle speeds along Lincoln Road. At best, it creates a brief bottleneck where drivers slow momentarily, only to accelerate immediately afterward. This does not address speeding behavior along the rest of the roadway and offers no comprehensive traffic-calming benefit. It is also worth noting that traffic tables are not safely traversed at 20-30mph. In practical use, drivers must slow to approximately 15–20 mph to avoid vehicle damage. This creates an inconsistent and potentially hazardous driving environment, particularly for unfamiliar drivers, cyclists, and emergency vehicles. Compounding this concern are ongoing discussions about asking residents to contribute financially to repaving Lincoln Road- work that will likely be necessary sooner rather than later due to the extremely poor patching performed after the water main replacement. If repaving is imminent, would the newly installed traffic table need to be removed and rebuilt? If so, how is this an efficient or fiscally responsible use of public or resident funds? There are proven, safer alternatives that address pedestrian safety without introducing these risks. For example, pedestrian-activated crossing signals, such as the flashing system used at Walden Pond, have been shown to improve driver compliance and pedestrian visibility while preserving road continuity. Why was this option dismissed by the Transportation Coalition, and on what evidence was that decision based? Finally, it remains unclear who would be responsible for the installation, maintenance, and long-term upkeep of the proposed traffic table. What are the projected costs, and how will they be funded? Given these unresolved concerns, it is difficult to justify a traffic table as the best, or even a prudent solution for Lincoln Road. Sarah Postlethwait
Everyone, We wanted to share with you the results of the Transportation Coalition survey and give you an update on recently completed and upcoming projects. The Survey: The survey opened on August 26th and closed on October 13th. 312 of you responded to our outreach: postal mailing, flyers, and emails. To all who responded: Thank you! The feedback we received will help guide our long-term planning. The Transportation Coalition will continue to partner with the Town's Public Safety Department and DPW on road safety and maintenance, and to fund as much as possible with a combination of state Chapter 90 money and grants. Resident’s top-rated priorities were additional roadside paths/sidewalks (82 votes), road maintenance (77 votes), and speed/traffic control (61 votes). Answers to the question "if you could pick one project to improve pedestrian or cyclist safety in your neighborhood, what would it be?" reflected these priorities: sidewalks and speed. The intersection of 117 and Tower Road and additional bike lanes were the largest group of specific responses. When it comes to taxes to support improvements, 146 of you are opposed, 129 are in favor, and 27 responded with "maybe". Projects: The crosswalk at Old Sudbury Road and Route 117 is now complete! It consists of new pedestrian refuge islands and a pedestrian activated warning light. This was funded by a Complete Streets grant. Attached is a picture for those of you who do not often drive along 117. The crosswalk by town hall has new, hopefully more visible signs. It will be upgraded to a speed table in the spring, once the water main patches have settled. The speed table will give drivers, pedestrians, and Public Safety experience with this new traffic calming measure. We will then consider whether speed tables are well suited to other crosswalks in town. A "speed table" is a traffic calming device consisting of a long, flat topped speed hump that allows vehicles to maintain speeds of around 20-30 mph while still slowing traffic for safer pedestrian crossings. Attached is an image of a speed hump from the Federal Highway Division. And, as most of you probably know, the second half of the water main project on Lincoln Road will begin in the spring/summer. The 2A repaving by Mass DOT will not be put out to bid until 2029. At least some of the 2A crosswalks and pedestrian protections that the Town advocated for remain as part of the plan. MassDOT has informed us that the Route 126 bridge project will start this coming summer and is projected to finish in the summer of 2031.
Margaret Olson Chair, Transportation Coalition
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