A number of residents raised traffic safety concerns for the intersection of Dexter and Clifton Street. Those concerns were summarized in the following document, Clifton And Dexter Safety Concerns, and shared at Malden's Traffic Commission meeting on 12/20/2016. Minutes from that meeting will soon be posted at http://www.cityofmalden.org/board-commission/traffic-commission.
At the 12/20/16 Malden Traffic Commission meeting, a public safety official from Medford presented a traffic study they prepared related to roadway trafficmoving between Malden and Medford, particularly in the ara of Fulton Street, Woodland Road, Fellsway East and Murray Hill Road. You can find the Medford study at this link.
The following refers to a Traffic Study which was a Joint Effort of DCR and the City of Malden - Background Documents / References of the DCR and City of Malden Study
Documents from the 12/8/16 Meeting
RECAP
More than 60 residents attended a 12/8/16 Public Meeting of the DCR and City of Malden. The agenda, attached, covered a traffic study for the Fellsway East and Highland Ave area. The meeting took place at the Beebe School and was moderated by DCR's Chief of Planning and Engineering, Norman Orrall.
In opening remarks, State Senator Lewis thanked citizens for taking time to attend and provide feedback. Senator Lewis recalled how he became aware of just how "unsafe this intersection is for motorists and pedestrians and residents" after he was elected as State Senator for Malden in 2014. A number of residents are known to have reported concerns during 2015.
Lewis recalled an accident from earlier this year which extensively damaged the property of a woman sitting in the front row, just a few feet away from where the Senator spoke. In early 2016, a car came hurtling over her sidewalk, barreling through her gated yard, on the way to collapsing the walls of her garage, and ending up in a neighbor's yard. (Coincidentally, a report of that accident was MNN's first published "story". It was an accident that gives new meaning to the lyrics of the 1980s Kenny Loggins' classic "Danger Zone" at https://youtu.be/58QOBqAWNzE).
Senator Lewis observed, "When we had that accident earlier this year ... I just couldn't believe it ...When I saw what happened there ....[I just said] we cannot endure this anymore. We've got to do better than this."
The roadway is state-owned and maintained, so state officials became involved. Senator Lewis' team worked to identify DCR grants which could help fund a traffic study. The City of Malden, through Mayor Christenson's office, agreed to provide matching funds. Other state officials supporting this initiative included Malden's State Representatives Paul Donato, Steve Ultrino and Paul Brodeur. After funding was approved, the DCR team went to work. What they shared with citizens on 12/8/16 is commendable: it is a first giant step forward towards greater safety and improved quality of travel. More work is needed but it is the most significant progress this "danger zone" has seen in years (if not decades.)
The meeting lasted about an hour-and-a-half. Here's a link to a video covering the early parts of the meeting. This video is just under 11 minutes and includes some of the opening remarks and findings from the study: https://youtu.be/bZ0RHb7VgRc
After DCR described improvement proposals, the floor was opened for citizens. A number of engaged citizens quickly raised hands and shared comments in a constructive way. DCR staff Anne Fresinger (Community Outreach) and Mahendra Ughreja (an engineer who also attended the Mayor's Safety Awareness Meeting at Beebe in March 2016) helped with questions.
Some meeting photos have been posted at https://www.facebook.com/MaldenNewsNetwork/posts/1797874563784541
DCR presentation and slides will be available at: http://www.mass.gov/…/…/dcr/public-outreach/public-meetings/.
Public comments related to this project may be submitted to DCR either online at http://www.mass.gov/…/public-outreach/submitpublic-comments/ or by writing to the Department of Conservation and Recreation, Office of Public Outreach, 251 Causeway Street, 6th Floor, Boston, MA 02114. The deadline for receipt of comments is Thursday, December 29, 2016.
At the 12/8/16 Traffic Study Public Meeting, different traffic designs and proposals were presented. After these "Alternatives" were discussed, the meeting was opened for Q& with attendees.
A citizen-driven draft of "Traffic and Transportation" issues was prepared after concerns about that roadway had been voiced by many Malden citizens. A June 2015 draft of that paper was circulated to various elected officials at the city and state level around the time of Senator Lewis's "Community Conversatioins" Forum, held on June 25, 2015in Wakefield. A version of this citizen draft remains online as a PDF at https://goo.gl/1bBSmi.