Well over 100 community members stepped from the chaos of the current, undivided Massachusetts Avenue into the Arlington Town Hall auditorium last night to discuss a set of proposed changes to that artery. The two-and-a-half-hour meeting attracted a restive crowd eager to hear the latest revision of the plan, ask questions and voice strong opinions.

Townspeople had concerns about increased traffic on side streets, proposed lane widths, additional traffic signals, the proposed placement of bicycle lanes, the danger to pedestrians crossing Mass. Ave, the loss of parking to sidewalk "neckdowns" to shorten pedestrian crossings, the loss of sidewalk space in some areas and increase in others, and a variety of other issues. 

Rick Azzalina, project manager for Fay, Spofford & Thorndike, the engineering firm assisting the city in the redesign, stressed that the proposed changes would improve safety on Mass. Ave. "When you narrow a roadway," he said, "you inherently force drivers to slow down. It's just human nature."

In the face of rampant doubts, Azzalina insisted that it is possible to narrow the street to only one travel lane in each direction for most of the stretch between Pond Lane and the Alewife Brook Parkway while actually creating a more efficient and orderly traffic flow. 

The proposal would further alter the traffic flow by introducing left-turn-only lanes, designated bicycle lanes, new striping, signs and signal improvements, including Opticom technology that changes a traffic signal in response to an approaching emergency vehicle.

Dozens of residents lined up to ask questions or comment on the proposals, with about 30 making it to the microphone before the meeting drew to a close a half-hour behind schedule. Some had only questions or mild reservations about the plan, but others were vehemently opposed to reducing the avenue to just two traffic lanes.

Eric Berger from East Arlington Concerned Citizens said the current proposal would "produce a system that's unsafe, unhealthy, inefficient and a nightmare to navigate."

Asked for his solution to the issues on Mass. Ave., Berger said his organization supports a shared roadway with educational outreach to better inform drivers and cyclists of their responsibilities.

Berger said he has hired lawyers and a civil engineering expert and plans to hire an environmental engineering expert to assist in his opposition to the plan. His attorney, Michael J. Rossi, an associate at the Cambridge firm of Clark, Hunt, Ahern & Embry, asserted that Arlington lacks the legal authority to narrow the street.

"There's a statute in Massachusetts that governs the laying out and alteration of public ways," Rossi said, "and a portion of that statute provides that a city or town shall not diminish the width of a roadway if that roadway was laid out as a county way."

Carol Kowalski, the town's director of planning and community development, responded that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation had reviewed the issue and concluded that it was "not a problem."

Throughout the question-and-answer portion of the meeting, Kowalski struggled to maintain order as some in the crowd heckled other speakers, shouted questions out of turn or refused to yield the floor when they had reached their two-minute time limit. At one point, a protester held up a sign opposing the plan, but Kowalski quickly persuaded her to sit down.

Particularly concerned about the proposed changes were residents of Lake Street and Bates Road, two areas that they say already face excessive traffic that endangers them and their families. Carolyn Mason, who lives on Bates Road, is adamantly opposed to adding a traffic signal to the intersection with Mass. Ave.

"What about the fact that now cars coming down Bates Road have to stop when they get to Mass. Ave. because there's a stop sign?" Mason asked. "When they have a green light, or worse, a yellow light, they're going to hit the gas and go like hell and mow down my kid."

Azzalina tried to reassure opponents to the plan that it was still a work in progress and that their concerns would be addressed as it continues to take shape. He said that the ultimate goal was to reach a compromise plan agreeable to everyone in the town.

"Throughout my career, I've been involved in many, many design review community processes, and believe me, it works," he said. "I feel confident that we're going to get there. It make take a while, but we'll get there."