A particular section of road in Hartford is drawing concerns from people who live and work in the downtown area.
They’re asking drivers to be more careful around Pulaski Circle after seeing fender benders and close calls.
Robin Zaleski has seen some close calls at Pulaski Circle in Hartford, especially from drivers.
“They are oblivious to signs and crosswalks. I have been literally standing ready to cross a crosswalk and you wait to make sure the cars stop at the stop sign and they don’t,” she said.
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She says part of the reason is Pulaski Circle isn’t a true roundabout with a yield sign coming from a road connecting to Interstate 91.
“Cars coming off of Whitehead Highway do not have to yield the traffic already in the rotary. A lot of drivers don’t realize that and they’re zipping through it anyway,” she said.
Zaleski also says a number of drivers don’t follow the stop signs getting into the area.
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“The roads around the rotary are pretty wide, which is kind of a signal to go as fast as you want. It needs a road diet,” she said.
The Connecticut Department of Transportation says between 2018 to 2022, there have been 109 crashes at Pulaski Circle, but no deaths. The agency says it’s aware of the concerns and is part of the Greater Hartford Mobility Study.
Zaleski says the neighborhood revitalization group in south downtown that she heads tried to get funding to address the issue through the Hartford Decides initiative, but didn’t get enough votes, but she’s glad there’s potential action down the road.
“We’re very glad that it’s one of the projects being considered by the Greater Hartford Mobility Study albeit not as big as some of the larger projects,” Zaleski said.
For now, she just wants drivers to slow down.
