EASTHAMPTON — On any given day, Tom Peake waits for up to 12 cars to zip past him at the intersection of East Green and Holyoke streets before a motorist will pump the brakes and let him cross the road.
Time and time again, the Precinct 3 city councilor has heard from his neighbors that live in the neighborhoods along Holyoke Street that navigating a safe walking route to downtown is dangerous. And he agrees.
“I see people flying down Holyoke Street and routinely swerving out of the way of pedestrians,” said Peake, who lives about two houses down from the intersection. “By the time they even see that crosswalk, it may be too late.”
Attempting to cross the street a little further west on Holyoke Street isn’t any better.
The crosswalk at the intersection of Allen and Holyoke streets is in front of Easthampton Housing Authority property Cliffview Manor, said City Engineer Diane Rossini.
“People aren’t seen very well when they’re trying to cross there, and there are a lot of seniors residing in that neighborhood,” Rossini said.
Recognizing those precarious circumstances, the city applied for grant funding that will improve pedestrian safety, and secured $286,000 from the state’s Complete Streets program.
With the funding, wheelchair-accessible ramps that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act will be constructed on both sides of Holyoke Street and rectangular rapid flashing beacons will be installed at East/West Green and Allen streets to aid pedestrians at the mid-block crossings, according to Rossini.
“As the Precinct 3 city councilor and a Holyoke Street resident, I am very excited to see the city address these long-standing accessibility and pedestrian safety concerns,” Peake said. “Many Precinct 3 residents use these crosswalks in order to access our downtown, and these improvements should ensure that they can do so safely.”
The grant will also fund the construction of a sidewalk at the end of East Green Street as Valley Kitchens, located at 51 A1 Holyoke St., has an undefined parking area and no established sidewalk.
The Holyoke Street grant will be stacked with the city’s state Chapter 90 funding, so that the entirety of Holyoke Street can also be paved in coordination with the installation of the new crosswalks and sidewalk, according to Department of Public Works Director Greg Nuttelman.
The approach is similar to the one taken with the city’s Main Street paving project that combined funding from Chapter 90, cannabis stabilization and the state Shared Streets and Spaces program. Together, the funding allowed for the expansion of the paving project to include new sidewalks on South Street, Nuttelman said.
The design and survey for the project was done by the engineering firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin of Watertown, with $39,354 in funding from the city’s cannabis stabilization account.
“The (Holyoke Street) crosswalks are probably at least 50 years old and certainly not up to today’s standards,” Nuttelman said.
In addition to the Complete Streets grant, the city was also awarded $200,000 from the state’s Shared Streets and Spaces program toward pedestrian improvements on Payson Avenue.
The project includes the creation of a raised crosswalk for the Manhan Rail Trail over Payson Avenue and the installation of rectangular rapid flashing beacons. The existing sidewalk along Payson Avenue will also be widened to 10 feet to allow two-way use by pedestrians and bicycles, according to City Planner Jeff Bagg.
The Payson Avenue project also includes the construction of wheelchair-accessible curb cuts that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act at the entrances to the Public Safety Complex and the Municipal Building, minor realignment of the intersection and crosswalk at Railroad and Payson streets, and the installation of a new bike rack at 50 Payson Ave.
The Payson Avenue project will enhance the Manhan Rail Trail road crossing similar to the improvements on Ferry Street funded through MassWorks, and the soon-to-be upgraded crossing on Union Street funded through the MassDOT Transportation Improvement Program, Bagg said.
“Both projects will build on last year’s $1.8 million dollar Safe Routes to School grant that will connect the Manhan Rail Trail to Park Street and continue to make the route safer for neighborhoods farther from the school to walk and bike to the new school,” Bagg said.
The Payson Avenue project is expected to go out to bid this winter with construction completed next summer. The Holyoke Street project is expected to be completed by the winter of 2023.
Emily Thurlow can be reached at ethurlow@gazettenet.com.
