Community Corner

Resident Offers Two Possible Solutions to Bike Path's Lake Street Crossing

Do you agree with either one?

An Egerton Road resident, Andy Draudt, recently sent an email to the Arlington Board of Selectmen offering two possible solutions to the Minuteman bike path’s Lake Street crossing.

Here’s the bulk of his email (some slight edits made for clarity):

“I commute by car and live on Egerton Road and experience jammed traffic on Lake Street from 5-7:30 p.m. I also use the bike trail and love it.

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It seems to me that the traffic jam is caused to a large degree by the combination of the traffic light at Hardy School and the bike trail. When the light is green, traffic does not flow well because the cars have to stop for bikers. Bikers don’t obey the stop sign and assume right of way, causing all cars to stop and wait or be extra cautious.

My solution would be these:

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1. Put a traffic light for the bikers that is timed with the light at the school (perhaps only in operation during 5-8 p.m., when the traffic jam occurs). This would allow traffic to flow when the school light is green. Or, if that is not feasible …

2. Put a barrier to bikers to impede them from driving into the road at full speed, and make a policy that traffic has the right of way during rush hour, when the school light is green. This would at least reduce the excessive caution and slow down of traffic and allow better flow when the school light is green.”

Discuss …


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