If you loved the idea of that bicycle lane temporarily installed last year on Wiggins Street and Hamilton Avenue, then you will be interested in the latest news about that stretch of roadway posted by walkableprinceton.com.
If you hated the idea of that bicycle lane, you also will be interested in the latest post by walkableprinceton.com.
The report refers to a study now underway of traffic, safety, and mobility issues on the 1.1-mile length of Paul Robeson Place, Wiggins Street, and Hamilton Avenue from Bayard Lane to North Harrison Street. As the town explains on its website, www.princetonnj.gov, the study will “examine potential improvements including pedestrian and school crossings, intersection improvements, traffic calming, on-street parking, and bicycle facilities.”
As walkableprinceton points out, the town is trying to strike a balance among 1.) motorists passing through town, 2.) residents who live on those streets, 3.) people who park their cars along this corridor, and 4.) bicyclists and pedestrians. One alternative that could satisfy groups 2, 3, and 4 is “to return Wiggins Street to something more like a normal residential street.”
To do that, the walkable advocates suggest “an alternative approach” that “would reduce traffic congestion along the route, create space for safe cycling facilities, and maintain on-street parking.” That approach would require turning all or part of that corridor into one-way sections. In one possible proposal cars could proceed east on Wiggins Street between the Public Library and Vandeventer Avenue or possibly Moore Street. On the other side of that point, traffic could proceed west. Where they meet they would be funneled up to Nassau Street.
Currently the Robeson-Wiggins-Hamilton corridor is a convenient bypass for some motorists trying to skirt traffic on Nassau Street. If this change were implemented, walkableprinceton says, “out-of-town drivers are likely to adjust their routes in the long-term to avoid the area.”
The consultant, WSP USA, based locally at 2000 Lenox Drive in Lawrence, will be undertaking “data gathering, community engagement, analysis of intersection performance and safety issues, and concept development and testing,” according to the municipality. “Local residents, businesses, and community members are invited to participate in the study.” E-mail engineering@princetonnj.gov or call 609-921-7077.
This was originally published in the February 2019 Princeton Echo.
