By Jean Perry, Neighb News Correspondent
Fairhaven residents will soon notice a new phrase added to the local lexicon: Complete Streets. It’s an important phrase because it will eventually come to represent an expansion of our ability to navigate our community via all modes of transportation more safely, be it driving, walking, traveling via wheelchair, or biking. What’s more, residents are encouraged to participate in the critical process of identifying which areas obstruct us in our journey getting safely from Point A to Point B and beyond.
Fairhaven Director of Planning & Economic Development Paul Foley is spearheading the effort to secure funding for the town to tackle its transportation trouble spots and make Fairhaven more accessible in various ways.
Mr. Foley has already secured a grant to employ a consultant, Green International Affiliates, Inc. (Green), to help the town draft a Complete Streets Policy and Prioritization Plan for Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) approval, which will make Fairhaven eligible for further grants of up to $400,000 a year as part of the state’s Complete Streets Program.
What are “complete streets?” Smart Growth America, a national non-profit that advocates for making communities safe, accessible, and livable for all, says complete streets “are streets for everyone,” designed and constructed for safety, comfort, and efficiency.
A complete street is unique to the needs of individual communities but can include sidewalks, bike lanes, accessible public transportation stops, safe crossing junctions, and sometimes speed roundabouts, pedestrian crossing signals, radar speed signs, median strips, lighting, and even benches — things that make moving about safer, more enjoyable, and more convenient for all travelers.
Since it started in 2016, the Complete Streets Funding Program has awarded $46 million for 148 construction projects as of the beginning of 2020. This year the program awarded $8.1 million to 24 communities in Massachusetts.
Fairhaven has joined the now 249 municipalities that have registered with MassDOT to begin the Complete Streets process, which starts with a Tier 1 Training and Policy Plan, followed by a Tier 2 Prioritization Plan. These two processes are now underway for Fairhaven, and in April 2021, the town will submit these two plans for approval to enter into Tier 3, Project and Construction Funding.
“We wanted the Fairhaven residents … and businesspeople to be aware of what’s going on and where to find additional information,” said Bill Scully, vice-president of Green, on December 8 during a Google Teams meeting with the Neighb News and Green engineer Jayson Gauvin.
The two Green consultants have begun their fieldwork, research and data collection studies, taken an initial inventory, and are meeting with Mr. Foley and Fairhaven department heads to target specific areas of concern. Still, public input is essential in the process.
On the Planning Board website, Mr. Foley has created a special page for the Complete Streets Funding Program, which includes a link to a wikimap survey where residents can pin specific locations and place a comment on the problem and a possible solution.
For example, if there is a particular intersection or street that is difficult to cross due to low visibility or high-speed traffic, you can mark it down. If there is a place with a situation that makes walking, using a wheelchair, or biking difficult, you can tell them.
“We do focus on some of the major roads in town in terms of our fieldwork,” said Mr. Scully. “We really start with openness. The goal is to make other modes of travel, like walking, biking, use of public transit, more accessible and safer — other travel choices besides just hopping in your car and driving somewhere.”
Mr. Scully said the Training and Policy Plan is nearly done, so the focus is now on devising a plan of action with specific projects in mind to submit for approval so the town can go after the big bucks to enact the plan.
The team will consult with the Department of Public Works, the Police and Fire Department, the School Department, and the Bikeway Committee, said Mr. Scully, “And we’re trying to gather all that information now and identify the issues.”
But public input is crucial, he added, because the town needs to list at least 15 potential projects to make Fairhaven streets complete streets. This process must conclude in time for the April 1 deadline to submit both plans for approval.
The best part about the money is that it is essentially “free” money. The town isn’t required to match any funding for any of the grants. The only requirement is that the town completes the projects within a relatively short timeframe, which is why some of those “low hanging fruit” projects — ones that are obvious and relatively easy to accomplish — will be included on the list.
Notice a street near a school that should have a crosswalk or pedestrian lighting but doesn’t? Suggest it. Do you live in elderly or low-income housing and see a need for a public transit shelter? Suggest it. All comments and results from the online wikimap tool will be considered, Mr. Scully said.
“We really want to get the word out,” said Mr. Scully. “It’s a great program, I think, one of the better programs the state has come up with…. They really are trying to get the funds out and get the projects implemented. They want the projects done.”
“Hopefully, the number of comments and feedback will increase as people hear about the program,” said Mr. Gauvin. “We can’t do it all (on our own). That feedback is definitely very useful for us to make sure we capture as many issues as we can.”
Unfortunately, a tunnel beneath the harbor linking Fairhaven and New Bedford isn’t an option (Believe me, I asked), but you know what they say about the proverbial squeaky wheel…
Fairhaven residents: Forget about the futile Facebook complaining and visit www.fairhaven-ma.gov/planning-board/pages/complete-streets. This is your opportunity to grumble and gripe on a legitimate platform about what gets your goat while traversing the public ways of Fairhaven. Your whining is welcome there.
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