Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Pedestrian Signals Blooming


Saw this pedestrian-actuated flashing light going up on Langley Road at Langley Path (the site of an earlier bumpout reconstruction). And, there are new pedestrian signals in various stages of installation at Crafts and Linwood, Waverley and Arlington, and Waverley and Franklin.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Any news about the one that was supposed to be planned for Daniel and Parker?

CFA said...

There is one new one installed on Waverly Ave. Our NC neighborhood has advocated for it for a while. Great for kids trying to walk to Bigelow Middle School.

Please visit a new website regarding snow clearing from the sidewalks and curbcuts in Newton:
http://snowynewton.blogspot.com
We were also recently highlighted in the Newton TAB blog.

Anonymous said...

By the way, that bumpout at Langley Path seems to have been a waste of money. People still zip through there, even with the crossing guard parking her car directly opposite it. Without her there, it's impossible to tell the road was even narrowed. How much did that cost?

Anonymous said...

"Bumpout reconstruction." Qu'est-ce que c'est? Fa fa fa FA fa fuh fa fa FA fah ...

Anonymous said...

I am happy that Newton is installing these at major crossing points, however I think that they should follow suit with Wellesley and Brookline by posting a "Pedestrian in Crosswalk When Flashing" sign in advance informing approaching motorists that they need to stop if they see these things flashing.

Anonymous said...

Parker and Daniel was never approved. It is being examined for future consideration.

Anonymous said...

I mean it is being examined and may or may not be approved in the future.

Anonymous said...

Why does there always seem to be some sort of hidden information with some sort of generalized non-information speak in it. The committee report said that the consultant was given the go ahead to design a traffic light. So what does it's "being examined" mean. Is the report complete, is there a design to look at? Any idea when it's coming up? If you say it's being examined, you must know something.

Anonymous said...

Are these signs making a difference? I seem to recall research showing the 'slow children playing' yellow signs made no difference in speeding. How do we know these don't just become part of the background to drivers? Have they ever been done with flashing red lights?

Sean Roche said...

The problem with signs is that they never change based on conditions. So, they are ignored.

Pedestrian-actuated flashing lights are different because sometimes they are flashing. And, sometimes they are not.

I'll look around for research.

Michael Oliveri said...

To Sean Roche,



We are a group of Worcester Polytechnic Institute students conducting a study on pedestrian mobility in Newton, MA. We are focused on improving pedestrian mobility in four areas of Newton: Newton Corner, Newton Center, West Newton, and the area around Route 9 from the Chestnut Hill T stop and the Mall at Chestnut Hill.  We are focusing on the village centers in these areas. We plan on presenting our results to the Board of Alderman towards the end of April, and we will be making a presentation in the Newton Free Library on May 3rd from 7pm-9pm.



If you are interested, we would like to schedule a time to speak with you about your opinions on the current state of pedestrian mobility in Newton.  We were informed you might be interested in this study, and feel you would be a valuable informant.


We would really appreciate any information you can provide.




Thank you for your time,

Pedestrian Mobility

ped-mobility@wpi.edu


Cory Alemian

Jeff Greenwood

Michael Oliveri 

Caitlyn Shaddock