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| By Courtney Llewellyn Reminder Assistant Editor EAST LONGMEADOW With the start of school just two weeks away, drivers are once again reminded to be extra alert while driving in school zones. School superintendent Edward Costa wants to make those zones more visible. Costa brought up the subject of blinking yellow lights for Maple Street, in front of the high school, during the School Committee's Aug. 4 meeting. "I wince at the long line of traffic going in and out of the high school," Costa told the committee. He noted that during his eleven year tenure as superintendent he has not seen any serious vehicle accidents on school property but some nearby. "I believe we need one [a blinking yellow light] on both sides of the high school so traffic will slow down," he added. Costa contacted the consulting engineers at Tighe & Bond about performing a traffic study on Maple Street, which may be one of the steps necessary before the signs could be placed. The school zone signs are regulated by the state, not by towns. A representative from Tighe & Bond told Costa a study may not be needed; if it is, however, the study would cost around $10,000. An engineering study from the municipality must contain both the collected data and analysis of this data. Data collection includes preliminary study of conditions; speed calculations of curves (MassHighway responsibility); speed observations; studies of crash distributions; and trial runs over the location. "This is just me getting information," Costa told the School Committee. He said he wanted their opinions before taking any action. Bob Mazzariello, chair of the School Committee, asked if the signs would be for the high school specifically. "To say high school students are less vulnerable than others isn't true," Mazzariello stated. Committee member Greg Thompson wondered if the signs would be put in place for all five schools in town. Costa replied that he wants to start small and focus on the only school with young drivers. "If we were to move forward with this, I'd ask the school to absorb the cost [of the traffic studies] and then ask the town to reimburse us at a town meeting," Costa said. "I believe in safety, but we're facing tough times with fuel costs," member Angela Thorpe said. "I don't think this is the right time." "I would like to see this moving forward with all five schools as well," member Bill Fonseca said. "It's not going to prevent a tragedy nothing can. But we need to be in a proactive instead of reactive state." School Committee member Thomas McGowan asked if this could be entertained as a potential capital planning project for next year. "At some point, discussion has to stop and action has to begin," Costa said. "I've planted this seed, and I would like to see this [topic] on another agenda sooner rather than later." According to the Massachusetts Highway Department, "in some cases, it has been noted that speed zoning has had a marked effect in lowering the accident rate." |