Staff Responses to Forum Posts (Part II)

“Hello, as a cyclist that would love to be able to bike to downtown area for events and shopping, this plan looks amazing. The center street intersection is so dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists to cross in its current state with the bypass right turn lanes and the large size of it. The lack of good parking for bikes is also discouraging in the current time.Would it be possible to extend bike accessibility down Main street all the way to Robertson park? This would mean that the three parks along main street (Charter oak, robertson, and center springs) would all be stops along the path. I really think the strip of main street between center street and north main has a lot of potential, but is not accessible nor aesthetically pleasing in its current state. Maybe this would be better suited as a project of its own, but this seemed like a good extension off the project proposed.”

The Connecticut DOT owns and controls Main Street between Center Street and (including) North Main Street. The Town is working with the State on multiple projects to better accommodate bikes and pedestrians in the area you describe. Cars are prohibited from parking in designated Bike Lanes and there is a need at many locations along Main Street to provide on-street parking.

The Town is working on plans to better connect the Cheney Rail Trail with the proposed Downtown Cycle Track. Also, the Connecticut DOT has recently acquired an additional portion of the railroad property in the North Main Street area and the Town has a concept plan for extending the Cheney Rail Trail to Colonial Road (once funding can be secured) along this property. In addition, the Town is working with the DOT to incorporate some limited bike lanes in the North Main Street area as part of the DOT upcoming paving to better connect the future Cheney Rail Trail extension with Robertson Park. It is anticipated that the Cheney Trail would be the preferred route to reach the North End and the Robertson area with the Town focusing on efforts to improve connectivity to the trail in different neighborhoods.