Drivers make turn lane where none exists
For those who spend lots of time driving around the city, the words "traffic" and "logic" can often seem like mutually exclusive terms. Tipster Gary Schweon tells GlobeWatch that he's been frustrated with what seems to be a handful of traffic issues in West Roxbury, including one by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Parkway that appears to defy common sense.
"I am looking for some logic here regarding why Boston traffic makes certain decisions on traffic control," writes Schweon. "Spring Street and the VFW Parkway by [the] VA Hospital - another decision not well thought out. The city made the Spring Street left lane approaching VFW Parkway a left turn only. That is fine, but they left only one other lane to go straight or to turn right onto the VFW. There is room for a right-turn lane if cars were to see painted line dividers on the street and a right turn arrow lane were established. I can squeeze by easily when cars are lined up properly. The traffic always backs up, and a right-hand turn lane would make sense considering there is only one lane going straight over the bridge after crossing the VFW."
A Globe reporter visited the intersection of Spring Street and VFW Parkway last week and found a persistent bottleneck that stretched back several blocks to the VA Hospital parking lot as a result of the traffic flow plan.
With only two lanes, drivers wishing to turn left onto Route 1 from Spring Street get a dedicated lane, while those headed onto either Bridge Street or the VFW Parkway must share a single right lane. Because the right-hand lane is somewhat wider than a normal lane, frustrated drivers wanting to turn onto the parkway but avoid waiting for the traffic signal will try to squeeze by the queue, and even drive up on the curb to pass through. An MBTA bus stop seems inconveniently located just feet before the VFW Parkway turn, thus blocking all traffic in that lane when a bus is dispatching and picking up fares.
"They just redid the VFW and put these lines in. . . . What is the rationale for not making this more efficient?" writes Schweon.
After receiving complaints about Spring Street backups from a Boston city councilor, MassHighway adjusted the timing of traffic signals on June 30 to provide more time for Spring Street westbound movement, said Adam Hurtubise, a department spokesman. "In addition, we are reviewing traffic count data to determine whether we need to make any adjustments to the lane configuration," he said.
Hurtubise said part of the traffic problems stem from limits imposed by a short bridge that crosses the Charles River on the Dedham line by Bridge Street. "The adjacent bridge is wide enough for three lanes of traffic. When the bridge reconstruction work was completed in 2005, the design called for two lanes eastbound across the bridge toward the Providence Highway/VFW Parkway intersection and one lane westbound away from the intersection. Because of the proximity of the bridge, there is not sufficient room for two lanes of traffic to travel straight ahead from Spring Street and safely merge into a single lane; therefore, the approach provides the exclusive left-turn lane and the shared through/right turn lane." He said the MWRA work "did not alter the intersection other than some adjustments to the wheelchair ramps" and repainted road stripes are consistent with the bridge's limitations.
Massachusetts Highway Department
10 Park Plaza, Suite 3170, Boston, MA 02116
617-973-7800
