The difficulty of getting from place to place in Connecticut is a never ending source of frustration, especially in Fairfield County. While there is no silver bullet for fixing our traffic problems overnight, we can do some things to bring relief over the next several years.
We need to both increase our highway capacity and make mass transportation more convenient to reduce traffic on our roads. I have proposed two pieces of legislation that would ease traffic congestion by eliminating bottlenecks on our roads, and make mass transportation more convenient to Metro North riders.
My first proposalwould authorize $50 million in bonding to add traffic lanes at the highway “choke points” determined by the state Department of Transportation (DOT) to be most troublesome. If you travel down the Merritt or I-95 during rush hour, you know exactly where the traffic builds up almost every day at busy exits where cars are coming on and off the highway. Rather than the extremely expensive proposal of adding lanes to the entire highway, my proposal would only add entrance and exit lanes at these choke points.
Connecticut has already had success using this approach. The Sikorsky Bridge on the Merritt Parkway in Stratford used to result in mile-long backups every day at rush hour. The DOT did a fantastic job of reconstructing the bridge by adding one lane to each side. Now there is never any traffic backup at the Sikorsky Bridge. Why not empower the DOT to use its expertise to identify and fix other highway chokepoints along the Merritt and I-95?
Additionally, State Representative Jason Perillo and I have proposed adding a southbound entrance ramp to Route 8 at Exit 14 in downtown Shelton. This is another traffic choke point for Howe Avenue and Bridgeport Avenue that can be alleviated by easier access to Route 8.
My second proposal would increase the convenience of MetroNorth by creating a comprehensive shuttle system in Norwalk, Stamford, and Greenwich. People travelling to New York find MetroNorth convenient because it is easy to catch a taxi from Grand Central Station to anywhere you want to go.
People who commute from Shelton, Stratford, and Monroe to lower Fairfield County do not have the same inexpensive and convenient experience. Not only is parking difficult at many Fairfield County train stations, but once commuters arrive at their destination there is no convenient way for them to get to their offices. We can make Metro North a more attractive option for in-state commuters by creating a comprehensive shuttle system in lower Fairfield County to transport people to and from the train stations and major business areas.
Easy parking is another key to making mass transportation convenient. State Representative John Harkins and I have received commitments from the DOT for expanding parking at Stratford Train Station. The design of the new parking garage is complete, and will receive a public hearing in the next few weeks.
Of course, it is difficult to request new funding for even the best of projects during this difficult economic time. However, we will eventually recover from this recession and we have to be ready to implement good ideas for promoting economic growth. Improving our transportation system is critically important to the future of our state, and I will continue to push our government to take a comprehensive, long term approach to improving our roads and mass transit.
Dan Debicella is the State Senator representing Stratford, Shelton, Monroe, and Seymour. If you have feedback for him or want to talk about the issues, he can be reached toll-free at (800) 842-1421 or by e-mail at dan.debicella@cga.ct.gov.
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