Wilton’s Board of Selectmen (BOS) is unanimously supporting a plan by the CT DOT to install “centerline rumble strips” (CLRS) along a key portion of Danbury Rd.
Although the state does not need permission from the Town to install CLRS on the state road, Town officials were nonetheless given advance notice and an opportunity to express any objections.
Details of the plan were discussed at the Monday, Oct. 17 BOS meeting.
What Was Proposed and Why
Wilton Police Department Chief Tom Conlan appeared at the BOS meeting to discuss the CT DOT’s proposal, which outlined a compelling safety argument for installing CLRS:
“CLRS are a cost-effective, proven safety countermeasure that substantially reduce the risks of head-on, sideswipe opposite direction, and roadway departure crashes… It is comprised of a series of milled grooves embedded in the centerline of the roadway, which are painted over with yellow centerline markings. These grooves produce sound and vibration intended to alert distracted, drowsy or inattentive drivers that they have unintentionally crossed the centerline… the audible and vibratory warning provided by the CLRS greatly improves the chances of a quick and safe return to their lane.”
Conlon told the selectmen that the Wilton Police Commission, which the state considers the local traffic authority, was in favor of the project.
“[CLRS] are obviously a big benefit,” Conlon said.
According to the map provided by the CT DOT, the CLRS would run from the intersection at Wolfpit Rd. (Route 106) as far north as Wilton High School and the Riverbrook Regional YMCA.
That portion of roadway meets the CT DOT’s CLRS best practices guidelines, including the key criteria of traffic volume (2,000 or more vehicles per day) and speed limit (35 miles per hour or higher).
Accidents resulting from drivers crossing the centerline — either head-on or side-swipes between cars traveling in opposite directions — occur with alarming frequency. According to CT DOT statistics, there were 2,265 injuries from such accidents on Connecticut roadways in 2022 alone (not including interstate highways). 25 cases resulted in fatalities.
There were also 198 single-vehicle crashes, with 79 injuries, in which the driver crossed the centerline and struck a fixed object.
GOOD Morning Wilton reached out to WPD for statistics on centerline accidents in Wilton. Deputy Chief Rob Cipolla reported that over the last three years (2020-present) there have been 21 accidents on Danbury Rd. that were either head-on crashes or side-swipes between cars traveling in opposite directions.
“When you look throughout the state, almost every municipality has centerline rumble strips in them now,” Conlon said.
The CT DOT proposal notes that when CLRS is installed, accidents that do occur are often less severe. CLRS can also help alert drivers to the centerline when visibility is poor, such as in snow or fog.
Young people are especially prone to such accidents. One in three people injured in centerline accidents are under the age of 25, according to the CT DOT.
Selectman Josh Cole shared his own experience as a law school student in upstate New York, when a rumble strip jolted him awake during a long drive.
“[After] I hit those rumble strips, I never fell asleep on that drive again,” he said thankfully. “It does work.”
While Wilton residents have already endured weeks of repaving work on the same stretch of Danbury Rd. — including many with damaged tires to show for it — Conlon assured residents the CLRS would be installed in as little as “a day or two”.
More Efforts To Target Distracted Driving
The centerline rumble strips are not the only tool being deployed to defend against distracted driving in Wilton.
At the Oct. 17 BOS meeting, the selectmen authorized the WPD to submit an application for a state grant of approximately $23,900 to enable WPD to increase enforcement of distracted driving offenses during FY2024. The enforcement effort will focus primarily on mobile phone use in areas identified by the department as more likely to have accidents due to distracted driving.
More BOS News
The Oct. 17 BOS meeting also covered the following agenda items:
- The BOS discussed the Parks & Recreation Commission‘s recent recommendation to re-prioritize $500,000 planned for improvements at the Middlebrook sports fields in favor of adding lights at Guy Whitten Field at Wilton High School. GOOD Morning Wilton will be reporting on this discussion in a separate story.
- The BOS approved a proposal for road salt for the 2023-2024 winter season.
- The board agreed to a request by the Friends of the Norwalk River Valley Trail to submit a LOTCIP grant application to fund completion of another section of the popular trail. The “Ridge Route” would run from an area off Mountain Rd. to Bristol Place.
- The board unanimously approved a lease agreement for the Town to lease parking spaces from the owner of 254 Danbury Rd. during construction of the new police headquarters. The lease allows up to 50 parking spaces for $1,000 per month during construction, when parking will be limited at the Town Hall campus.
Rumble strips are a good start. I wish they would add a light at Catalpa and a cross walk at the light near the tennis courts too so kids can safely cross Rt 7.