DEPARTMENT OF

PUBLIC WORKS
DIRECTOR’S OFFICE
70 TAPLEY STREET
SPRINGFIELD, MA 01104

413-750-2808 413-787-6029 FAX

CITY OF SPRINGFIELD
MASSACHUSETTS

Date: August 6, 2019

To: Mayor Sarno, Tom Ashe, Ed Pikula

From: Christopher M. Cignoli, P.E. – Director Department of Public Works

Re: Springfield Central Library / State Street Crossing

On August 2, 2019, Councilors Jesse Lederman, Marcus Williams and Adam Gomez,
sent a letter to the Mayor and I, requesting that a signalized crosswalk be installed at
the entrance to the Central Library to the parking lot on the opposite side of State
Street.

While this item has been discussed for a number of years, I will again provide all of the
necessary background information and design issues that have been considered in the
past.

In the 1970’s to the early 1990’s there was a defined crosswalk from the parking lot on
the south side of State Street to the Library Entrance across State Street. While no
documents exist, the crosswalk was removed due to numerous accidents (both vehicular
and pedestrian) at that location. The aerial photo below is from 1995 and shows that
the crosswalk has been removed.
Over the course of the last few years, at a number of publ ic presentations that I have
attended, people have stated numerous times that a defined crosswalk existed up until
the time of the State Street reconstruction. As shown by the attached photos, no
crosswalk existed, anytime after 1995. The streetview below is from August of 2007
that shows the conditions before the State Street reconstruction which began in late
2008 / early 2009 and no crosswalk is present.

In 2007-2009, the City completed the design upgrades to the State Street corridor from
West Columbus Avenue through its intersection with Boston Road / Berkshire Avenue.
The reconstruction of the corridor included significant upgrades including providing a
significant amount of pedestrian access and crossing improvements.

From information that I have gathered as part of the State Street construction, studies
were completed by the designers and it was determined that a crosswalk being returned
to the location in front of the library would not be approved by MassDOT and FHWA
for the following reasons:

 Mid-block crosswalks across 4 lanes of traffic are not desired unless certain
warrants are met.
 Mid-block crosswalk that are within a stopped traffic queue are not allowed
 Mid-block crosswalks within “the influence” of an approaching intersection
should not be allowed.
 Signalized mid-block crosswalks must be shown to have no impact to adjacent
signalized intersections.

The design of State Street (and the subsequent Spring Street and Edwards Street)
Construction Projects, included coordination with the Central Library’s internal site
reconstruction plan at the time, to create a primary centralized parking area s off of
Edwards Street for use of all of the facilities within the Quadrangle area, including the
library. These lots include all of the necessary ADA compliant parking space to be able
to access all of the Quadrangle Facilities. While the parking lot on State Street can be
used for the Quadrangle / Library, it is not intended to be the primary parking location.

During the design of the State Street project, as it was determined that a crosswalk
would not be installed across State Street at the Central Library, the design progressed
and removed the existing parking lot stairs at the crosswalk location and install a new
set of stairs at the northwest corner of the parking area. Also as part of the design, the
at-grade ramps in front of the Library were removed, and landscaping and passive
ornamental fencing was installed in front of the library to prevent pedestrians from
crossing at that location. The intent of the design was that people who want to access
the Library, or other Quadrangle facilities, from that particular parking lot, should take
the new stairs, go to the Chestnut Street crosswalk and safely cross at that loc ation as
shown below.

New
Stairs

The distance from the stairs to the crosswalk is 150’ and then 240’ back to the Library entrance.
This utilizes a crosswalk specifically designed for this purpose. The aerial photo above shows
the old stairs removed and the location of the new stairs.

As part of the State Street project, an unprotected mid-block crosswalk was placed east of this
location at the Elliot Street intersection, as an additional location for residents / pedestrians to
cross State Street, most specifically for access to the new (at the time) Federal Courthouse.

Also, as part of the State Street project, a protected mid-block pedestrian crossing was installed
on State Street with a traffic signal in front of Commerce High School. This signal is always
green except when activated by pedestrians wishing to cross the road. The location of this
crossing was specifically selected as it is 550’ west of the State Street intersection with Federal /
Walnut Street, well outside of the influence of that intersection. The main bus stop for
Commerce and Springfield Technical Community College was placed on both the eastbound and
westbound lane of State Street at this location.

In their August 2, 2019 memo, the Councilors referenced a recently approved pedestrian
signalized crossing on State Street in the area of the Mason Square Apartments. In the planning
stages of the proposal for that signal, the designers were made aware of all of the necessary
engineering studies that needed to be performed and they were completed over the last 2 ½ years
and ultimately approved by the DPW. The location of the proposed crossing is located 350’ +/-
from the closest signalized intersection so it is located outside of the influence of any adjacent
signalized intersection. It also meets all of the warrants required for the required installation.
Based upon the requirements of the MassDOT, any modification of the agreed upon Traffic
Control Agreement for the State Street Corridor project, requires a submission and approval from
MasssDOT. The consultants for the project are in the process of that review at this time. Copies
of their engineering studies are available.

With regards to State Street / Library location, over the past 5 + years, we have responded to
similar requests for installation of a crosswalk / beacon at this location. Over that period of time,
traffic studies for the MGM Casino Project and Road Safety Audits were completed for the State
Street area, in addition to numerous other areas deemed to be impacted by the Casino. As part of
the Functional Design Report completed for the Casino project, intersection analyses were
completed for all of the proposed locations deemed to be impacted by the development.

Within Table 10 on Page 120 of the FDR (Functional Design Report), traffic queues on the
westbound State Street approach to the Chestnut St. / Maple range from 198’ (50th percentile)–
255’(95th percentile) for the morning peak and 316’ (50th percentile) – 426’(95th percentile) for
the afternoon peak. These distances were for the existing conditions, prior to the construction of
the Casino. Other portions of the Table reflect growth patters (2024) with and without any of the
proposed traffic improvements required to address the Casino project. A copy of the Table is
below:
As previously stated, part of the warrant study for a mid-block crossing is to determine if any
adjacent traffic signals will have an impact on the proposed location. The proposed location is
located 230’ +/- from the stop bar at Chestnut Street. That means that if a crosswalk were to be
installed at that location, stopped traffic would be occurring at the crossing location, meaning
pedestrians would be crossing through stopped traffic, which is extremely dangerous. A fatality
that occurred at this location a number of years ago, happeed for that exact reason. The person
was crossing in front of right lane traffic that had stopped, while a person travelling in the left
lane had the green light and was travelling at posted speed and didn’t see the person.

Another option that was discussed in the past was the use
of Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB) (See
photo). When this product was introduced into the
industry a number of years ago, the Federal Higway
Administration (FHWA) and the Manual on Uniform
Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) issued guidance on
where these types of units shoud be installed. There are a
number of these units in the City of Springfield, most
recently installed on State Street at the District Courthouse
adjacent to MGM Way. These units basically flash yellow
when activated by pedestrians. They are inteded to be
stand-aone devices that are outside of the influence of any
other traffic control devices. In late 2017, the FHWA
recinded its approval for use of these devices, but in March
of 2018, the FHWA issued a new interim approval for use
of these devices with additional placement guidance. The
recommendations for this type of device for use on a four lane road recommends that a center
island be placed so the the RRFB’s could be seen by drivers in both lanes and that pedesatrians
have a refuge area in the middle of the road.

Based upon the roadway layout, adding additional width to State Street at this location was
researched as part of the State Street peoject, but could not be accomplished based upon land
availability, impacts to utilities, etc. As can be seen in other sections of the roadway islands
were added along the corridor.

The option that was referenced in the letter from the City Councilors was for the installation of a
HAWK (High Intensity Activated Crosswalk Beacon) system, otherwise known as a Pedestrian
Hybrid Beacon. The City currently has one of these devices installed on Plainfield Street in the
area of McDonald’s and the Route 91 on/off ramps. The device was installed as part of the off-
site mitigation required as part of the Casino construction.

The HAWK system basically operates similar to a regular traffic signal, very similar to the
previously discussed signal at Commerce High School. The only difference is that the HAWK
system for the main roadway is always green unless activated by a pedestrian. The FHWA and
MUTCD provide a significant amount of engineering design guidance and design standrds that
must be followed in order to install the device. Very similar to the installation of a traffic signal,
if certain standards for warrants are not met, the device should not be installed.
A recommendation within the design standards states that the stop bar placed at the crossing
location on a multilane road should be moved back a safe distance so that if a driver that is in the
right lane that is stopped, that a person in the left lane can see the traffic signal and have enough
response time in case the signal is not visible (ie. Large truck, bus, etc.). This would then reduce
the amount of distance between the new HAWK location and the adjoing intersection.

A second recommendation is that a refuge island be placed in the center of the roadway,
especially in location where intersection are in close proximity (intewrsections mean roadways,
driveways, etc.) so that a driver entering the roadway in close proximity to the HAWK and
doesn’t immediately see the crosswalk, the pedestrian has a safe area of refuge.As previously
stated, this item was explored as part of the State Street design and deemed not acceptable.

An additional recommendation is that if a HAWK system were to be placed near a signalized

intersection, that the HAWK system be designed in such a way that the signal systems are
coordianted to beeter control traffic flow and minimize possible congestion. At this particular
location, not only would the HAWK system need to be coordinated with the signal at the
intersection of State / Maple / Chestnut, but also with the signal at the intersection of Dwight /
State and Maple.

At the present time, the pedestrial signals at the two signalized locations (Dwight St & Chestnut
St.) possess exclusive pedestrian phases, meaning that when a pedestrian activates the crossing
signal, all four of the traffic approches have red lights. Due to a significant amount of driver
complaints, the two existing intersections are coodinated for traffic flow, however, have been
separated for pedestrian use, meaning that when the pedestrian sugnal is called at one
intersection the other intersection continues to operate normally, and vise-versa.

If a HAWK system were to be introduced, the three signal locations would need to be integrated
as a triplet location, but activation of the HAWK system would then over-ride the system and
require that the other 2 location to turn red to ensure that traffic on the mainline does not back up
into the adjacent intersection.

Due to the volume of traffic at this location on the corridor, the current traffic signal cycle
lengths (the lengthof time for all approaches to cycle through green, yellow, red sequence) at
both of the signalized intersections are very long, in excess of 1 ½ minutes. Based upon the
current long length of the two locations, when the HAWK system button would be activate, there
could be a significant amount of time (possible in excess of two minutes) until the pedestrian
would be able to cross the road. Based upon data from the FHWA, the longer the wait period for
pedestrian crossing, the more chance that a pedestrian will try to cross the road prior to the
proper signals being activated.

Also, based upon the traffic data provided as part of the Casino project and volumes during the
peak period, and based upon our experience, introduction of a HAWK system would cause an
additional increase in traffic queues by at least 25%, causing the Level of Service (LOS),
currently C,D,E, and F, to deteriorate ever further to full failure of the intersection. This would
result in vehicles being trapped within the intersection while cross traffic is trying to get through.

As part of the Casino project, the DPW and the City worked very closely with MassDOT and the
traffic engineers who were responsible for the design of the off-site mitigation as required for the
project. While a major portion of the review centered on vehciular traffic entering and exiting
the facility and their use of the surrounding roadways, a very large portion of the review and
design centered on increased capacity of bicyclist and pedestrians throughout a very large area.
Specifically along State Street, the review and ultimate pedestrain improvements extend all the
way to Bay St. / St. James Ave. / Oak Street intersection. Based upon discussion with the
designers at that time additional pedestrian crossing locations along State Street are not
warranted. In the immediate are of the Casino, three additional mid-block crosswalks were
added; on State St. at the Courthouse, on Main St. at Howard Street, and on Union St. near the
relocated church. Also, while geometric improvements were not warranted, signal timing and
pedestrian timing changes were made at all of the intersections along State St from West
Columbus Ave, up to the Bay St. / St. James Ave. / Oak St. intersection.

If designs were to be presented on the installation of a HAWK system, submission to MassDOT

would be required as it would be a modification of a previously approved Traffic Control
Agreement. MassDOT would then review the design and possibly reject the installation, or place
significant additional roadway related improvements as a requirement at the expense of the City.

In summary, based upon all of the information researched by the DPW, information provided by
other consultants, the construction of a HAWK system at this particular location would not meet
the necessary warrants for installation, would cause significant other traffic issues, and create
addiditonal negative impacts in adjoining locations, thereby not providing the proposed safe
passage for pedestrians.