Bristol residents ask council to push state to study traffic light at Jamieson Drive and Medicom Avenue

Residents urged the Town of Bristol to seek a traffic signal at Jamieson Drive and Medicom Avenue, saying the intersection’s two-lane to one-lane merge, higher post-line speed and heavy commuter traffic create hazardous conditions.

Lisa Belmourg, a petitioner who said she collected neighborhood signatures, told the council the intersection is “unsafe” and that residents sometimes must turn right and circle back rather than make a direct left. John Camillo and others described drivers using the turning lane as a passing lane and drivers jockeying for position as lanes merge.

Council members who spoke in support noted congestion during morning and afternoon commutes and the presence of a day care and medical office near the junction. Councilman Perella asked the police and DPW to provide pertinent crash and traffic-count data to the state traffic commission. The motion, amended to direct coordination among the town administrator, police and DPW and to forward the petition and documentation to the state traffic commission, passed unanimously.

The council emphasized the town’s limited jurisdiction for signal placement and said the state traffic commission would make the final determination. The council also asked the police department to contact the petitioner with information on the traffic‑study process and any data needed for the state review.

Next steps: the council will forward its recommendation and the petition to the state traffic commission and the town will provide the commission with crash and traffic-count data requested by its investigator.