Park Ave Safety Improvement Project - Mar 31st, 2025

Meeting held at town hall. Materials were available from https://www.arlingtonma.gov/Home/Components/News/News/14699/225.

(Jim Feeney, Town Manager) Mr. Feeney introduces town staff and elected leaders that are present. Park Avenue was prioritized in the Connect Arlington plan, and two pedestrian collisions have led the town to prioritize the road for safety improvements. Town staff worked with the Finance Committee to find resources for the design work, and this is a meaningful first step in the construction of a complete street. This phase focuses on improvements at the intersections of Oakland Ave, Appleton St, and Wollaston Ave. The town has already reduced the speed limit on Park Ave to 25 MPH and added more signage.

(Erin Cameron, Stantec) Ms. Cameron was one of the planners who worked on improvements to the Mass Ave and Appleton Street intersection. Tonight we'll see several high-level designs for Park Avenue.

Park Ave is a key connector between Mass Ave and Route 2. There's high pedestrian use, and a high number of vehicle crashes. Automobiles make up about 98% of the road's mode share and the majority of traffic is above 30 MPH. The road was designed for high speed; to improve safety we'll have to change the design so that people drive more slowly. Stantec is taking a complete streets approach that considers all roadway users.

Park Avenue is designed for fast-moving traffic, with travel lanes that are 12' and 13' wide. These are the same lane widths that you'd see on an interstate highways. 70% of automobile trips on Park Ave are pass-through trips, that neither begin nor end in Arlington.

The design priorities are reducing speed, simplifying intersections, providing a safe walking environment, and providing multi-modal options. There are several ways to achieve these goals, including chicanes, curb extensions, crossing islands, and reducing the width of travel lanes to 11'.

The Wollaston Ave intersection is very large with lots of pavement. They plan to use bump outs to channelize traffic. Paul Revere Road sees a high volume of cut-through traffic, which it was not designed for.

That's the end of the presentation. Attendees are given time to look at different designs, and to talk with Stantec's transportation planners.