I’ve read many articles and opinion pieces on the Main Street redesign, and I’d like to start by saying that I support making our downtown more of a destination for visitors. As someone who works downtown, it certainly can use updates, and give more reasons for visitors to come and visit. A vibrant and healthy downtown should be a priority for city leadership.
I also think that those who are only focused on calculating the decrease in parking spots are missing a bigger issue. I’m much more concerned that having only one lane for vehicles per side will have a negative impact on the quality and safety of our downtown.
There is literally just one street that enables drivers to pass through downtown Northampton, whether it be to get to work, errands, or any other reason that requires entry to Hadley or any other parts of town, as well as connected towns. It’s the center and heart of our area.
We aren’t a large city with multiple options when a street is congested. There is only one “main street,” and once vehicles have to find alternative routes, this issue is going to impact the streets all around our downtown.
Just like any city, there are cars, public transportation, deliveries, UPS trucks, FedEx trucks, up and down that same street all day long. Not to mention the emergency vehicles such as police and ambulances that pass through our Main Street on a regular basis. My office overlooks Main Street, and I often hear those sirens. I’m afraid that having just one lane, which will also need to accommodate parallel parking, will turn our entire downtown into one congested parking spot.
And it’s dangerous. I should know. Back in 2020, I was struck by a vehicle in one of the crosswalks downtown. I woke up on a stretcher, and thank goodness the ambulance was able to get to me quickly. In emergencies, seconds can make the difference. It’s reckless to not have a second lane!
And all of this for a bike path? As Steve Herrell pointed out in his column [“Main Street redesign problematic,” Gazette, July 29], there is already a bike path to get to downtown. I know it’s one block off Main Street, but isn’t that good enough?
I’ve been listening to a lot of George Carlin lately. He was a modern truth teller, and many of his writings certainly apply to Northampton. To quote him, “I’m tired of these self-righteous environmentalists, these white, bourgeois liberals who think the only thing wrong with this country is that there aren’t enough bicycle paths. ”
I ask that our leadership find a happy medium. I fully support a downtown redesign, but please keep two lanes in each direction for the well-being and safety of our citizens, and not prioritize a nice perk for the select few who are lucky to live close enough to bike at the expense of the vast majority.
Gregg Schwartz lives in Florence.