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Village crosswalk safety revisited as DOT technology, costs cited; town traffic group to monitor corridor work
Summary
A town traffic committee representative told the Select Board that improved technology and lower costs for flashing beacons warrant revisiting the earlier decision to retire village crosswalks; the board and local committees will track Route 16 corridor planning and DOT data.
John Gotchen, speaking as a village association member and representative to Lakes Region Planning, asked the Tamworth Select Board on May 13 to keep crosswalk safety on the town's radar as a larger Route 16 corridor study proceeds.
Gotchen said a previous Select Board decision had been to retire the village crosswalks because upgrades to meet current safety standards appeared cost prohibitive at that time. "We at that time made that decision because it was cost prohibitive," he said. He told the board that local traffic committee members later learned from regional planners that technology for mechanized or flashing beacons has improved and that costs have come down.
Speakers at the meeting recalled widely varying cost estimates discussed previously: one board participant recalled earlier figures in the tens of thousands, while a speaker recounted a DOT figure that was much higher. "Those are just the ones that border the signs ... the flashing beacons ... it reduced, you know, it slowed people down a significant amount," a participant said when describing the DOT data on flashing beacons.
Board members and the village traffic group said they want updated pricing and technical specifications from Lakes Region Planning and the New Hampshire Department of Transportation before reopening formal action. Gotchen and others recommended the town's traffic safety committee keep monitoring the Route 16 corridor review and gather current information about products such as solar-powered flashing beacons and always-flashing signs.
No vote was taken to change the earlier decision; members said the committee would gather new cost estimates and maintenance implications before the Select Board takes any action. Road maintenance and winter snow removal issues were raised as factors that could affect what solutions are feasible for town crews.
Gotchen also asked the board to consider the village crosswalks as part of preserving the village character and tying into larger corridor planning work now underway by Lakes Region Planning.
