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Maynard task force backs Article 25 as part of broader push to reduce nighttime crash risk
Summary
The Roadway Safety and Safe Streets Task Force reviewed Article 25 — a new outdoor‑lighting bylaw — and heard local crash data showing a substantial share of injury crashes happen at dusk or in unlit areas. Members agreed the bylaw complements, and must be coordinated with, engineering-led safety audits and state guidance.
The Town of MaynardRoadway Safety and Safe Streets Task Force on Tuesday discussed how Article 25, a recently passed outdoor‑lighting bylaw, should be implemented alongside engineering, enforcement and data efforts to reduce nighttime crash risk.
Chair Mario (task force chair) said the bylaw, which members recalled passed amid intense public comment (members referenced a reported vote of about 135–118), applies to new and replacement outdoor fixtures across residential, business and municipal properties and relies on industry lighting guidance rather than prescribing lumen counts. "The new law applies to all new or replacement outdoor lighting fixtures, business, residential, and municipal," Mario said, adding the bylaw emphasizes shielded, directed fixtures so light is used where it is needed and not cast into neighbors' windows or into drivers' eyes.
Mario placed the bylaw in a safety context, citing state and local crash trends. "We average 100 to 125 crashes a year. Of those 417 crashes in the last four years, 119 occurred between 5 p.m. and midnight," he said. "One out of every four crashes in Maynard involve a pedestrian or driver negotiating Maynard streets under diminished or totally dark conditions." He told the group the Massachusetts crash portal shows 832 fatal nighttime crashes statewide from 2020–24 and that roughly 40% of those fatal crashes occurred at locations that were unlit.
Task force members emphasized the bylaw is only one piece of an effective response. Mary Grayson, a town volunteer who does data work with the task force, and others urged better inventories and engineering review before strict appliance of any lighting rule. The group noted MassDOT has not issued statewide light‑intensity requirements; in practice many communities look to Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) guidance and, where needed, hire consultants to translate policy into safe roadway‑level designs.
The discussion highlighted data and implementation gaps. Mario described discrepancies between police records and the state RMV dataset that must be reconciled before drawing firm local conclusions: police audits found more incidents than the RMV public dashboard listed for the same year. The task force agreed on several next steps: (1) finish intersection audits and fill missing data in Google Forms, (2) reconcile crash counts with Maynard PD and the RMV so public dashboards reflect accurate public‑road crashes, (3) consult Dark Sky Massachusetts and IES guidance in drafting technical interpretive materials, and (4) coordinate public outreach while the town awaits formal Attorney General review and guidance.
Members stressed the bylaw's flexibility is a feature, not a flaw: it allows traffic engineers to balance pedestrian and driver needs at specific sites. "It doesn't ban lights; it asks that light be directed where you need it, and not into people's eyes," a member said in support. The task force plans to document the bylaw's intended enforcement path and to prepare interpretive materials the town administrator can use once Attorney General review is complete.
The task force will continue monitoring MassDOT pilot guidance on pedestrian lighting and follow university or state research into glare as a crash factor before recommending stricter technical limits.
