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07/01/2017 09:17 AMIf you stood in front of the Blackstone Library and looked toward the town green, you'd be looking at the site of a proposed traffic roundabout that would incorporate intersections of Main Street, South Main Street, Laurel Street and Eades Street.
On Thursday, July 13, Branford Town Engineer Janice Plaziak invites citizens to a public information meeting on the proposed "Main Street Gateway Project," roundabout, in the works as a possible traffic/pedestrian/cyclist solution for the area since 2008. The info session takes place Thurs. July 13, 7 p.m. at Branford Fire Headquarters, 45 North Main St.
The public is invited to attend a meeting to learn about and provide comment on this project to build a roundabout at Main, South Main, Laurel and Eades Street intersections and other road improvements in this area of the Town Center, noted Plaziak.
The information session is meant to gauge public support for the concept. It's the next step following a presentation to the Town Center Revitalization Review Board (TCRRB) in December 2016. The presentation by CDM Smith Design (New Haven) received favorable reviews, according to the meeting minutes. The minutes also noted that, "ConnDOT will not move forward without local municipal 'buy in' to the concept." The project incorporates a state road (South Main/Route 146) as part of its plan.
The subject of the roundabout came up briefly during a Transit Oriented Development public workshop held by the town and while several in the room recognized the need for a safer intersection there were worries about what might be a significant change to the town center.
Beginning in 2008, working with Plaziak and the Branford Engineering Department, CDM Smith's study and design for a roundabout for the town center yielded what the company ultimately described in 2016 as a "...multimodal, complete streets solution would provide safe access for the community's pedestrians and bicyclists, as well as motorists."
The South Central Regional Council of Governments (SCROG) and Connecticut Dept. of Transportation have endorsed funding for design and construction for the improvement.
SCROG's mission is to bring together 15 local governments to coordinate land use and transportation planning on a regional basis. Part of SCRCOG's statutory responsibilities include developing the region's Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program (LOTCIP), with provides state funding to urbanized areas. For fiscal year 2015, the SCROG's Transportation Committee and Transportation Technical Committee budgeted four projects, including Branford's Main Street Gateway Project, with an estimated $3 million cost. Construction costs would be paid by the state.
At the December TCRRB meeting, Joe Balskus, P.E. with CDM Smith shared that ConnDOT is encouraging traffic roundabout installations in the state; to the point that ConnDOT will not consider signalization of an intersection without first considering a roundabout design, if applicable.
According the TCRRB minutes, the proposed oval-shaped, five-legged roundabout would allow for less land and overall pavement to create the roundabout. The points of entry would post a speed limit of between 15 -18 miles per hour. Entering vehicles would yield to those in the roundabout (yield signs would be posted). It also would retain a notable Pin Oak tree as part of its design feature. In addition, another the oval plan would be to incoporate designing nearby Cedar Street for one-way northbound traffic, which would avoid the need for installing a traffic signal at Cedar Street