The CT DOT opened a access road to Naugatuck State Forest, adjacent to an active railroad line, in Beacon Falls on November 13.
According to a press release from the CT DOT, Department of Transportation Commissioner James P. Redeker said, “This access road has been made much safer for hikers and others, with the addition of guiderail and fencing, as well as appropriate warning signs about the proximity of the railroad." The access road is Cold Spring Road, and this section of the Naugatuck State Forest is known locally as High Rock Park. DOT forces installed more than 3,000 feet of guiderail at the site and erected 10 signs cautioning users to stay clear of the railroad tracks. The cost was about $16,000. The road was closed earlier this year because of safety concerns. During a public meeting last week at Central Connecticut State University, CTfastrak designers said when the bus service starts in 2015, riders will receive a wide variety of amenities.
According to an article in the Hartford Courant, amenities on the new bus line will include digital signs above station platforms, rapid-style loading and unloading from front and rear doors, onboard electronic signs and recorded announcements to tell riders which station will be next. Commuters will also be able to use the CTfastrak web site to plan trips, including connections in Waterbury, New Britain, Hartford or the Amtrak service in Hartford and Metro-North trains in Waterbury. The web site trip planner will track buses by GPS which will help commuters receive up-to-the-minute travel time details. During the presentation last week, engineers told attendees the construction of the route linking New Britain, Newington, West Hartford and Hartford is on track to start service in February 2015. CTfastrak is bus rapid transit. Transit goes hand-in-hand with bikeable, walkable communities.
(Newington, CT) -- The Connecticut Department of Transportation will be holding a series of Open House meetings to update the public on the construction and service plan progress of CTfastrak, Connecticut's first bus rapid transit system, scheduled to begin operations in early 2015. The meetings are free and open to all members of the public. During the planning stage, CTfastrak was known as the New Britain-Hartford Busway. The project includes 11 transit stations in New Britain, Newington, West Hartford and Hartford with buses running every three to six minutes during peak commuting hours. When CTfastrak opens for operation, some bus routes in Bristol, Plainville, New Britain, Newington, West Hartford, Cheshire, Southington, Waterbury and Hartford will change and most will have much more frequent service. The public is invited to learn more about CTfastrak and share what is important to them and help design a transit system that will efficiently serve their travel needs. For those who are unable to attend in person, comments on the service plan can also be made via e-mail to info@ctfastrak.com. The next CTfastrak Open House events will be held on the following dates and venues: Central Connecticut State University Friday, November 15, 2013 11:30 A.M. to 1:30 P.M. Frank Diloreto Hall, Room 001 1615 Stanley Street New Britain, CT (map) Elmwood Community Center Wednesday, November 20, 2013 5 to 7 P.M. 1106 New Britain Avenue West Hartford, CT (map - Please note that entrance is via South Quaker Lane and then to Burgoyne Street. Directions here) Individuals requesting language assistance or accommodations due to a disability should contact the Connecticut Department of Transportation communications office at (860) 594-3061. For consideration, requests should be submitted five working days prior to the event. The department will make every reasonable effort to provide assistance when possible. For more information: Judd Everhart judd.everhart@ct.gov 860.594.3062 The Farmington Valley Trails Council will hold its Annual Meeting this Friday, November 15, at 7 pm at the Avon Senior Center at 635 West Avon Road, (the Sycamore Recreation Area) Avon, CT 06001.
The business portion of the meeting will be led by FVTC President, Bruce Donald, who will present a year-end business report, introduce newly elected officers and directors and update attendees on trail construction and other trail council initiatives. The evening's featured speaker will be Andrew Carrier, Project Manager for Vanasse, Hangen Brustlin, Inc. a transportation and infrastructure consulting firm. VHB has been hired by the Connecticut Department of Transportation to develop and implement a plan to insure the completion of the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail. Andy has successfully managed 36 federally funded Transportation Enhancement projects with a total value of $27.4 million. Currently he is responsible for management of all such state projects in his role as CONNDOT liaison. His presentation will focus on the plan to fill in the 9.1-mile gap from Red Oak Hill Road in Farmington, through Plainville to the existing trail head in Southington. Admission is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be served. National data on commute times don't show much movement since 2008, based on a report from the Pew Charitable Trusts. In Connecticut, 78.6% of our workers drove alone to work in 2012, down just 0.1% from 78.7% in 2008. For 2012, just 3.0% of workers commuted on foot, while 4.8% took transit. Biking to work doesn't even have its own category in this report, falling under "other" at 1.3%, unchanged since 2008. One bright spot--the percentage of people who walk to work increased from 2.8% in 2008 to 3.0 percent in 2012. Now those are some metrics to work on. Read more and see interactive 50-state map» The Jonah Center for Earth and Art invites the public to a presentation and
planning forum on extending the Air Line multi-use trail from East Hampton to Portland, on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2013, at 7 p.m. in the Mary Flood Room of the Portland Library. The program will be led by John Shafer, President of the Jonah Center for Earth and Art, and Deanna Rhodes, Planning and Zoning Administrator for the Town of Portland. They will describe the project using maps, ground level and aerial photographs, cost estimates, potential funding sources, and elements of the planning and community organizing tasks that will be required to realize this vision. The Air Line State Park Trail follows the right-of-way of the former Air Line Railroad, which was built to connect Boston and New York City in the latter half of the 19th century. The corridor was known as the Air Line because it traced the most direct route possible - as if by a line drawn through the air. For 86 years, from 1873 to 1959, the Air Line provided a high-speed passenger rail connection between these prominent northeast cities. In 1975, the Air Line rail corridor was deeded to the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), and in 1996 the DEP proposed rehabilitating the rail bed as a linear state park. The 17.6 mile stretch between East Hampton and Windham is presently the most improved and popular section of the trail, featuring scenic bridges, ponds, marshes, and gorges. For more information about the program or the Jonah Center, contact John Hall at 860-398-3771 or visit www.thejonahcenter.org. In an effort to focus on Route 1/Boston Post Road in Clinton, Westbrook and Old Saybrook, the Route 1 Corridor Plan is working to address current and long-range intermodal travel and community quality of life in this area. The group is holding public sessions devoted to visioning. These events will take place on:
Click here for more information. It's Election Day, and that means today is your chance to elect the best champions for biking and walking in your town. Elections will take place in all but four of Connecticut's 169 cities and towns, with the post of chief elected official at stake in 126 communities. That's a lot of potential for positive change. The offices that are up for grabs today are the very ones that will -- or won't -- make your town a safer, better place to bike and walk. Don't think your vote won't make a difference! Connecticut's local elections are routinely won by miniscule margins. Some municipal races have been won by fewer than five votes. Even if you're not registered to vote yet, you can take care of that today at your town hall. Go vote. It matters! Read more about today's elections at It's not just about New Haven, Stamford, by Mark Pazniokas for the CT Mirror and at In Local Elections, Your Vote Has Power, Julie Lewin's Op-Ed for the Courant. The National Center for Safe Routes to School announced that a record number of schools participated in the 2013 Walk to School Day. Schools from all 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico took part, with a total of 4,447 schools pledging to walk to school on October 9th.
According to the National Center for Safe Routes to School, this year’s registration topped 2012’s record total of 4,281. Many more communities celebrated Walk to School Day, but didn’t register their event. Other interesting registration facts:
Check out which schools in Connecticut took part in the event here. CTfastrak has issued a construction bulletin.
In Hartford, the current pedestrian/cyclist crossing at the Flower Street Amtrak rail line will be permanently closed as of November 11, 2013. A temporary pedestrian walkway will be installed prior to the closure. The temporary pedestrian walkway is located below the I-84 viaduct, just north of the existing Amtrak rail crossing on Flower Street. It will run parallel to the rail line between Flower Street and Broad Street. This walkway has been established to provide connectivity with Capitol Avenue. View Temporary Pedestrian Walkway map here. |
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