Traffic studies have been completed, a detailed plan drawn up. But developers and city officials said at a “Future of Route 34” meeting that the Route 34 redevelopment plan remains in its “draft stage” and will not go forward without citizen suggestions.
“We’re looking for as much input as possible,” said Dave Sousa, pictured, of Clough Harbour and Associates.
Sousa and City Plan Director Karyn Gilvarg led the presentation at City Hall Monday, unveiling multiple proposals for how the Legion Avenue/ Frontage Road corridor stretching from downtown to the West River — could be changed from a high-speed limited-access road to a boulevard. The goal is to make way for future development on the approximate 12 grassy acres and bring neighborhoods that were cut off from each other back together.
Where the Route 34 corridor now stands, a neighborhood once was, torn down during urban renewal to make way for an expressway that was never built. The evolving new plan for all that vacant land is to bring economic development and much needed revenue to the city, build more housing and overhaul the traffic patterns to re-connect the Hill neighborhood with the Dwight-West River neighborhoods and downtown.
Monday’s presentation dealt mainly with transportation and roads, and not with economic development. Click here for background and information on the evolving plan.
“We want to create a more liveble and economically viable and competitive city and downtown,” said Sousa.
For that to happen, he said, traffic needs to be re-routed and calmed, other modes of transportation need to be encouraged and better connections to downtown need to be provided.
Some plans changed the number of lanes from two to three on both North and South Frontage Roads and included bike lanes and on-street parking. Another detailed a multi-way boulevard (a European design) which has faster traffic on inner lanes separated from smaller, outer lanes with grass and vegetation. The outer lanes would for cars exiting the boulevard, cyclists and pedestrians.
Pedestrian and traffic safety was a big issue in the presentation. Sousa said the current combination of wide lanes, long blocks and few controlled intersections allows people to drive too fast.
He said the proposals will make the connector more “walkable.” “Walkable cities are the most economically viable and are an indicator of a healthy city,” he said.
Fair Haven Alderwoman Erin Sturgis-Pascale, herself an avid traffic- calmer, took issue with the increase in number of car lanes.
“It just won’t be pedestrian and cyclist friendly with all those lanes,” she said. “And there’s gotta be a way to slow down traffic, maybe roundabouts at every intersection.”
Mark Abraham of ElmCityCycling, pictured with Anstress Farwell, said that most cyclists don’t enjoy biking along side trucks and cars. He asked if it is a possibility that, as in European cities, the bikes could be separated from the cars. “People would be more comfortable cycling or on foot,” he said.
Sousa noted the Oak Street Connector, with exits 1, 2 and 3 off Route 34 east of the Air Rights Garage, carries 75,000 drivers per day, compared to 11,000 on Grand Avenue and 13,000 on Trumbull Street.
“We need to provide flexibility,” he said, also noting that traffic could increase by as much as 50 percent with the new Yale New Haven Hospital Cancer Center and the Gateway redevelopment.
Sousa optimistically said he believed the traffic calming could work because “people change behavior.”
Next up is a traffic study to be conducted with state of the art technology. Until then, the city is awaiting your commentary and questions. Gilvarg said the city will tour management team meetings looking for feedback.