STILL no action! How much could it possibly cost to put up TWO STOP signs at this intersection? This is the ONLY intersection on Kneeland Rd. that does not have a 4-way stop!

Well, they did the "traffic study" for the intersection of Kneeland Rd. and Hervey St. for the STOP signs for Kneeland Rd. One day two city trucks came by, the guys got out, looked around at the corner- this was AFTER the strips across the road were removed- got on the phone and then LEFT! NO ACTION SINCE! That was over a MONTH ago!

MAYBE as we get closer to election, everyone will come out of the woodwork looking for votes! I can't wait! There's going to be BIG changes in New Haven- for better or worse- but BIG changes! BYE, BYE incumbents!

Thanks for reporting this. Please see comments at http://www.seeclickfix.com/issues/40515 which seems to be a very similar issue.

I'd recommend closing one of the two, if possible, to make it easier for people to work together with their neighbors on this.

Mark-

It doesn't matter how many sites there are with the same concerns. Supposedly, the "proper" department is notified about the problem. If that's the case, then they are aware of the problem and don't care about doing anything about it. It should NOT take this long to put up TWO stop signs at this intersection.

Go here: http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/Engineering/completestreets.asp

This is the Complete Streets Manual and Project Request Form - which provides citizens with the tools to request changes to existing traffic control related conditions within the City of New Haven. Once you submit a request, it gets posted and a review board will determine the best course of action to take based upon the request that is being made. They will also contact you to keep you informed of the process.

Would anyone be interested in working on a request form here?

Hi Mark,
I believe I submitted it to the proper person (mfiguero). If not, I will try to find out to whom this form needs to be submitted. If you happen to know, I am happy to send it on to him/her.
Thanks for the prompting to move this along!
Meg

I don't see anything posted at http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/Engineering/completestreets.asp. Thanks for looking into that and for submitting a form! Getting requests into the queue and tracking them over time is one way to show demand for streets that better serve our neighborhoods.

Hi Mark,

In the Complete Streets Manual, it says the Project Request Form needs to be submitted to the City Engineer. Contact information is not specifically provided for the Engineer. So, I attached it to an email to the link at the bottom of the submission list (Questions and Comments link). The email was automatically sent to mfiguero@newhavenct.net. I do not know if this is the proper engineer or an administrative person who will get it where it needs to go. I wonder if it has to be reviewed by the engineer first before being added to the submission list.

If I do not hear back in the next week, I will follow up. Again, if anyone else knows the proper submission steps, I'm all ears. It is not super clear in the manual or on the request form.

Thanks,
Meg

Sending the form to that email address is the proper step for submission. You may also want to alert your Alderperson of the submission. Thank you for following up!

Hi, Yes, I heard back and was given this response re: next steps:

"This is to acknowledge the receipt of your request under the Complete Street Guidelines to improve safety elements along Kneeland Road at Hervey Street, which includes incorporating traffic calming elements to slow speeds to allow better/safer pedestrian and bicycle movement in this area. Our processes of evaluation will consist of verification of speeds and volumes on the road, traffic accident data and a physical review of the road and its context within the neighborhood. A recommendation will then be determined consistent with the complete streets guidelines.
Thank you for a complete document outlining the needs."

I'm not sure this is necessary, It will help A LOT if the trees are trimmed so that the stop signs can actually be seen. Right now, the stop sign while descending down Hervey CAN'T BE SEEN at all because a TREE IS BLOCKING IT. Lets get this trimmed first and go from there.

Chris,
I think your suggestion is good and would be helpful in the instances where people simply do not see the Hervey Street stop signs in time. Since there seems to be some tree removal and trimming going on in the area right now, perhaps these trees can be added to the list.
That being said, there are other reasons why stop signs would help minimize safety issues for the intersection and streets. First, it would help cut down at the high speeds some cars travel on Kneeland Rd. between Fort Hale and Raynham Roads. Second, some people who do stop at the Hervey Street stop signs assume it is a four-way stop sign. So, once they have stopped, they proceed into the intersection assuming the Kneeland Rd. traffic is going to stop. This happened yesterday and almost resulted in another accident (this time with a baby in one of the cars).
Thanks,
Meg

Meg, it seems like the city won't be happy until someone gets killed! How ridiculous that you have to jump through all these hoops and fill out all these papers and STILL NOTHING gets down! This is the ONLY intersection on Kneeland Rd. that does NOT have a 4-way STOP! Don't you just love politicians!

Requesting a stop sign is a process, involving several different stages in order to determine if the location being requested is warranted. The first step in the process would be to present a request to your Alderperson. He or she will review the information and follow up by contacting the Transportation, Traffic and Parking Department. Once the request is received by the department, staff will review the request and determine its viability based on guidelines given to us in the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices, issued by the Federal Highway Administration. Intersections must meet federal criteria in order to install a stop sign. If the warrant reveals the criteria is met, the department will submit a final recommendation to the Traffic Authority for approval and installation. This process can take anywhere from 2 to 6 months. Thank you for your concern in this matter.

Requesting a STOP sign might be a process, but I thought the process was being followed. This is the only intersection on Kneeland Rd. that is NOT a 4-way stop. A traffic study was done, but nothing ever materialized. If the other intersections meet the criteria, WHY wouldn't this one? Why does everything have to be so complicated?

Thanks for re-opening this as I was almost hit in the intersection again this week. I wonder what became of the labor-intensive document i submitted to the city a few months ago integrating the multiple needs of a livable city with the need for stop signs. Surely there is a better way than this convoluted approach.

Getting a sign is a process? The is the kind of red tape nonsense that has us tangled up in knots. People had to be killed and maimed at Parker and Townsend before the State approved a stop sign, which people routinely blow through now. But at least it slows some folks down. This type of paralysis has to go away. New Haven is not a livable city now and people will vote with their feet if a simple request like this takes a massive community effort to effect.
How about a protest at the intersection with media coverage to emabarrass the folks who need to do their jobs?? I''l go.

TC- I'll go too!

This problem area FIRST came to light back in JUNE 2010 in another section of seeclickfix. So, I would say that we have been VERY patient and Meg has filed all the proper paperwork! MAYBE the forms have been filed like the DSS paperwork and are stuffed in some box somewhere! What a joke. This seeclickfix is ONLY good when the powers to be WANT something to happen and NOT what the taxpayers want or need!

Let's get aldermen Paolillo and DeCola and make a date to meet and protest. I will write to Mr. DeCola. Who will contact Mr. Paolillo?? Let's get a date---- How about next Sunday, December 9th at noon?? This problem needs to be put on the front burner.
Enough stalling and delays--- 2 years is long enough to wait!!! Who will join us????

Thanks, TC!
We won't be able to make it Saturday but I think talking with the Aldermen is a great idea. I will also bring it up with Sal. I do not know Mr. Paolillo (not my direct alderman) and this is not in his specific area so I'm not sure if he could speak to this (perhaps I don't know how that works though).
Thanks for lighting a fire under us!!!
Meg

I notice that when I asked for a public demonstration at the intersection, meaning that people have to get up off the sofa and do something other than post complaints, the number of responses immediately slowed to a trickle. The lack of unity and willingness to act is why the Cove gets NOTHING from NH beyond a giant property tax bill. Thanks,everyone. Sorry to be so bitter but we get the govt we deserve and demand.

TC,
I appreciate your passion about the subject and your willingness to set a date and plan for action. I think it is a good idea to first speak with Sal about the proper channels and avenues. Perhaps he has some inside information that could help move this along. If this issue remains stagnant even after speaking with Sal, then I think taking it to another level is in order. This may involve a protest or setting up a meeting with the City Engineer, something. At any rate, I believe those next steps should be planned with advanced notice so we can have time to organize and produce a decent representation from our community.
If you have not yet spoken with Sal I am happy to do so.
Thanks,
Meg

Regarding ticketing activity, it would be great to know if this actually ever happens here. Without this information, there's no way to show that anything is being done.

To that end, dozens of residents and elected officials, including representatives from all 12 of the Community Management Teams in each New Haven neighborhood, requested information on neighborhood traffic enforcement about 16 months ago in a letter to the Mayor.

The request was a follow up to the 2008 Safe Streets Petition, which requested " Beginning in the 3rd Quarter of 2008 and continuing once every quarter, issue a citywide public report on the above two measures, including metrics on enforcement actions taken by neighborhood and number and type of penalties issued;" and was signed by more than 2,200 residents, plus 35 elected officials, and 100 local organizations and businesses.

The Mayor promised the information in his reply to last year's letter. Unfortunately none has been provided, despite repeated additional requests.

Again, it would be great to know exactly how many tickets are issued for running stop signs at this intersection each year. Otherwise, this debate is kind of pointless. If you are interested in helping to advance this issue please contact newhavensafestreets (at) gmail.com

Ticketing activity? We are lucky if we even SEE a police car in this area! There has NEVER been a police car at that intersection. Just curious if the stop signs at the other two intersections on Kneeland Rd. had to go through this act of congress to get their two stop signs? A few weeks ago they did put those rubber strips across the road for the SECOND time in about a year or longer. Have NO clue what that was supposed to do because it was done once before with NO results.

Yes, Just sayin. You can say that there are no police in your area, ever, but unless you have the information to prove that, it seems hard to rally your neighbors around changing the situation and getting either more ticketing, or other changes as may be appropriate.

The only information I have to prove that there is rarely a police car in this area is to ask the neighbors. Same goes for the ticketing activity. There has NEVER been a ticketing situation at this intersection. So, unless you live right near this area, you have NO clue. I'm done wasting my time with this situation because it is now a JOKE! God forbid someone is seriously injured at that intersection or killed, then maybe things will change.

Thanks for the suggestion, Mark.

I really appreciate your willingness to help us troubleshoot this issue. As Just Sayin' stated, there are rarely police around, that I know of. Of course, we are not camped out at the intersection 24/7 so it is hard to know if this does happen with more frequency than most of us know. I recall that police did pull over quite a number of folks at and around that intersection more than a year ago (maybe 2 years ago). I do not know if tickets or just warnings were issued. I imagine the only way to obtain the data is to add all of the incidents over a period of time as reported in the New Haven Crime log:

http://www.newhavencrimelog.org/cl/change-time-period/month/201106/

I question the accuracy of this data as well as the point of this entire exercise. As I stated, we do not know how many people simply received warnings or exactly why they were pulled up (it seems the disposition for this kind of "offense" is Moving Vehicle violation (2230) which may point to a number of potential MV violations). Also, as stated by Just Sayin', there is not a large police presence here so the actual number of tickets is not a reflection of the number of incidents. Also, I have checked this log before and have found that not all crimes/incidents have been logged here. So, we have issues with each step in this process.

If there is a better resource for obtaining this information, I'm all for digging around a bit (within reason, of course :)).

Again, thanks for being so invested in our neighborhood's safety and providing us any tidbits you may have to navigate this maze.

Meg

Yes, Meg, as you point out, there is no information there on the type of infraction issued. Everything listed there may represent a ticket that was given out for an unregistered vehicle.

It would be best if incidents could be reported by neighborhood, area, and type, broken down by categories such as Speeding, Red Light Running, Failure to Stop at Stop Sign, Unregistered Vehicle, DUI, etc.

That's what has been requested since 2008 (and again last year) and hopefully, the City will eventually get around to delivering what they promised. I wonder how many more front page articles on the NH Register we have to get before someone answers to the community. The City actually did produce a report on this, several years ago, but it was only for one week worth of information.

Mark,

OK, now I understand what you were getting at in your earlier post. Unfortunately, I cannot provide any information about tickets that may have been issued here for the reasons I stated above. I don't think this lack of information renders this debate pointless. Instead, it underscores the need for detailed data so the city can make somewhat informed decisions about how to increase safety. Of course, as we stated, just because there aren't tickets doesn't mean there aren't infractions happening. Hopefully this data, if it ever materializes, will be one of many indicators used to make decisions.

Thanks again for helping us along this process,
Meg

We are trying to delineate issues that are current and need the city's attention to resolve and as a result a number of historical issues are being closed. If your issue persists and needs to be addressed by the city please open as a new See Click Fix issue. Thank you.