Waterford Residents Meet for a Safer Street
By AMANDA RAUS
Updated 11:15 PM EST, Tue, Nov 10, 2009
People living on Old Norwich Road in Waterford have had enough of the speeding drivers, damaged property and deadly accidents. Since April, three people have died in accidents along or near Old Norwich Road. There have been nine accidents there in nine years.
"It's the volume and the speed. I think they go hand in hand," said Kate Cheromcha, who lives in the Quaker Hill neighborhood.
Neighbors say people use the road as alternative to nearby Route 32, so they won't get stuck in traffic lights. Then they speed.
"This neighborhood, it's quiet, it's a village neighborhood. These speeders make life very difficult for all of us and dangerous. There have been deaths and a lot of property damage and we have to find a solution for it," said David Jaffe, another neighbor.
So with strength in numbers, they gathered at the Quaker Hill Fire House on Tuesday night to discuss the problem and come up with solutions.
"We discussed with everyone here the option of closing off Old Norwich Road which is where the access from 395 and the casinos comes in, as well as adding the digital your speed signs permanently or semi-permanently so we could keep people aware of what's going on," said Debra Ward, a woman who is leading the fight for something to be done.
Waterford First Selectman Dan Steward says some of those changes are feasible.
"Changing the highway lighting, that's something we can do, changing the lighting in the center of town, that's a potential. Some stop signs, are very potentially, radar signs and doing more enforcement," said Steward.
As for the changes that involve the state Department of Transportation, they will take some time. Steward would like the neighbors to put a petition together on changes they would like to see happen.
First Published: Nov 10, 2009 11:02 PM EST
You Might Like
No comments have been posted yet.
You have 2000 characters left
