Hello Carson,
About 2 or 3 Years ago, while I was fueling up my 2015 Ford 4wd F-150 at the
Friendly's Service Station on Main Street in approaching evening darkness,
following a Heavy Snowstorm, I can still see a MAN, PUSHING A WALKER from the
right hand U shaped entrance of the Store across from the Friendly's Service
Station and next to Profenno's Pizza and Restaurant, out into the street,
parallel to Profenno's because there was an insurmountable snowplow Bank
blocking access to the Sidewalk. Whoever was the Contractor that does the
snowplowing for that very busy Spirits Store had plowed the U-shaped entrance
Driveway open and piled the snow to the Right, blocking the Sidewalk. I
believe I spoke with Paul Profenno asking him about the snowplow bank. I
probably should have also spoken with the owner of the Store.
Regarding the Sidewalks in Quebec City, the City Fathers - how long ago ???
must have worked with businesses and City Utilities in such a Northern
Latitudes City that gets BURIED in the WINTER, to design and engineer the
Utility Poles and Fire Hydrants so they did not block the Sidewalks for
removing Snow in the Winter. I also wonder how much good ole Powder Snow
Quebec City receives in the Winter, compared with the amount of Sleet - ICE -
Freezing Rain and Cement like Snow we receive here. As close and congested as
downtown Westbrook is, and the Electric Utilities being Underground in the
immediate Downtown Area, Street Lights would need to be relocated, Trees ?and,
than, maybe the Winter Sidewalks could be more clear of manmade Obstacles.
Some forward looking, safer Proposals, Carson, Thanks for speaking up !
Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Carson Wood <carsonlwood@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: wsmac@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Sat, Nov 27, 2021 5:23 pm
Subject: [wsmac] Re: Letter: Time to make streets safer
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div.yiv4797194185WordSection1 {}-->Sidewalks that have utility poles in the
sidewalks and fire hydrants in the sidewalks that take up the walk lanes
indicate that the sidewalks were after thoughts, or were left where they are to
save money rather than moving them to the inside edge of the sidewalk. No
thought was spent in thinking how sidewalks could then be cleared by a plow
blade as is the case in Quecec city. From: wsmac-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<wsmac-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Kimberly Tarbox
Sent: Saturday, November 27, 2021 11:07 AM
To: wsmac@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [wsmac] Re: Letter: Time to make streets safer As someone who is
relatively new to the vision impaired community I can see both sides of this
complicated issue. Westbrook's sidewalks are relatively narrow and especially
in the downtown district (with diners in the warmer months and lack of adequate
snow removal in winter) travel for the visually impaired can be quite
difficult. Add to that sidewalks that are in need of repairs. The sidewalks
which are intended for pedestrian travel are only "safely" usable a few months
out of the year. This definitely warrants further discussion. On Sat, Nov
27, 2021, 10:44 AM Dennis Marrotte <dennis.marrotte1111@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Good Morning, Yesterday, I sent a couple photos of the freestanding PEDESTRIAN
CAUTION Sign in the middle of Main Street at Dunn Street for the Main Street
Crosswalk.The Sign is getting Beat Up . This Crosswalk was 1 of the 5 Main
Street Crosswalks selected for having Bollards and Delineators installed in
2020 for the Summer months. They were Not installed for this Year's
Summertime. The Thought has crossed my mind:Picture that Yellow Pedestrian
Sign as a Real Human Being aka " PEDESTRIAN." Thank You,Dennis MarrotteVice
Chair Core Committee Member WSMAC On Sat, Nov 27, 2021, 10:30 AM John Brooking
<johnbrooking4@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
That's discouraging to hear about Westbrook's reputation in the blindness
community. Though I'm not a lifelong resident, my impression is that much of
the problem stems from our Main Street being wider than it needs to be, which
encourages both speeding and passing stopped traffic on the right without
properly evaluating the situation. Then combine that with the fact that the
land topography around here, mainly the Stroudwater river, makes us one of very
few commuting routes between Portland and the bedroom communities to the
northwest like Gorham and Windham, so we get a lot of through traffic.
Motorists are used to the world revolving around them, because roadway design
and priorities have done so for about 100 years now. Like fish not being aware
of water because it's all around them, most motorists don't recognize how
entitled they are because they're so used to it. It feels normal to them. On
Sat, Nov 27, 2021 at 8:22 AM Carson Wood <carsonlwood@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Good Morning All. One of the best examples of absolutely no forethought of
infrastructure other than motor vehicles is the Maine Mall area. I’d thought
the pandemic would change the beyond aggressive attitudes of drivers. By what
I can tell, it is the opposite. Many people I’ve spoken to in the blindness
community consider Westbrook not to be a safe community for pedestrian travel
and will not travel here. From: wsmac-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<wsmac-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of John Brooking
Sent: Friday, November 26, 2021 1:05 PM
To: wsmac@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [wsmac] Letter: Time to make streets safer Letter to the Editor from
the Portland Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee Link:
https://www.pressherald.com/2021/11/26/maine-voices-the-time-is-now-to-make-portlands-streets-safer-more-vibrant-for-all/
Text below, in case you have trouble getting to the letter online. ------
By John Clark and Winston Lumpkins IVJohn Clark is chair and Winston Lumpkins
IV is vice chair of the Portland Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee. In
recent weeks, we have seen a wave of crashes resulting in serious injury or
death to bicyclists and pedestrians in the Portland area. While the
circumstances surrounding these individual cases vary, we believe that the true
fault lies with the road infrastructure itself.Whether we’re traveling by foot,
bike or car, our roads are literally killing us. Nationally since 2009, there
has been a 51 percent increase in pedestrian fatalities. The first six months
of 2021 brought an increase in U.S. traffic fatalities of more than 18 percent,
compared to the same period a year before. These tragedies are preventable. The
time is now to redesign our streets to be safer and more compassionate for
all.Most roads are designed for speeds much higher than the posted speed limit.
This creates conditions that make it too easy for people to drive too fast. The
tragedy is that engineers know how to design safer roads. The solutions – such
as reducing lane width by a foot – are often simple and economical, but there
must be the political will. Road design must prioritize for the safety of all
users above the ease of motorists to travel at deadly speeds, which, when it
comes to a pedestrian’s chances of surviving having been struck, is above 25
mph. (This is not far below the most efficient speed to maximize the volume of
traffic flow.)Fortunately, a consensus is emerging that we need to rebalance
our transportation systems away from this self-destructive dependence on
single-occupant vehicles and toward a far more diverse array of transport
options.Locally, we can do our part by supporting local and regional
investments in safer infrastructure projects. There are some recent good
examples: The new roundabout near the University of Southern Maine has calmed
traffic and will be less expensive to maintain over time. The new design for
the Interstate 295 off-ramp onto Veranda Street not only provides a far safer
“T” intersection, but also includes bike lanes, crosswalks and a new waterfront
park to boot. These are win-win solutions that should be applauded, but we need
to do more.We don’t need to wait for huge and costly projects, however, to
create safer streets. At the intersection of Baxter Boulevard and Preble
Street, a “slip lane” has been removed, slowing cars as they turn onto Baxter
and making the pedestrian crossing much shorter, in addition to widening the
Back Cove Trail. While associated with a bigger project, this type of
improvement can be made quickly and easily with paint and traffic cones.
Slowing cars in residential areas can be done with low-cost temporary
interventions, which allows for testing of methods before spending millions of
dollars on more typical road projects.The Portland Bicycle and Pedestrian
Advisory Committee stands by to support our City Council and mayor in meeting
the needs of our community and creating streets that are safer, more vibrant
places to be.We hope that the new council, voted in by an overwhelming desire
for equity, justice and fairness, will address the inequities present in the
current design of Portland’s streets. We can, and must, make our streets safe
for all regardless of their mode of transport, be it by foot, bike, wheelchair,
scooter or, indeed, by car, the people of Portland should have the ability to
get where they need to go without fearing for their lives. The time is now to
create a high-quality network of bicycle- and pedestrian-friendly roadways, for
equity, for the planet and for the safety of all of us.
