Latest news with #MassachusettsDepartmentofTransportation
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Overnight ramp closure on I-91N ramp in Springfield on Tuesday
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) is notifying drivers of an overnight ramp closure on I-91 on Tuesday. Nightly closures on I-91 in Northampton due to bridge work The I-91 northbound ramp located on Longhill Street in Springfield will be closed from 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday until 5:00 a.m. on Wednesday. This closure is taking place due to overnight construction work in the area. MassDOT stated that variable message signage will be installed along Sumner Avenue near Longhill Street to assist drivers around the work zone. I-91 southbound access from Longhill Street will remain open for travelers during this time. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Nightly I-91 closures for bridge work in Northampton expected
NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (WWLP) – A portion of I-91 will be closed nightly in Northampton to allow for work on new highway bridges. Drivers will be detoured off I-91 to routes 5 and 10 in Northampton during overnight hours beginning on Sunday. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation is working on the four new highway bridges. Sphere Northampton presents 'Sculpting Your Brand' From Sunday, June 8th through Thursday, June 12th, the highway will be closed to traffic between 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. Drivers should plan ahead and expect delays in the area. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Yahoo
PVPC working on two-decade plan for bikers and pedestrians
The rail trails now scattered throughout the four counties of Western Massachusetts were once just a thought. Twenty years later, the trails offer scenic escapes to bikers and walkers from the bustle of everyday life. The Pioneer Valley Planning Commission is embarking on its mission to encourage more pedestrians and cyclists to use shared paths and roadways over the next 25 years, as part of its Regional Transportation Plan. 'These plans are powerful, (and) we can't do that without people sharing their visions and dreams,' Jeff McCollough, principal transportation planner at the commission, said of converting the public's transportation visions into reality. The first plan was completed at the turn of the century in 2000, and revisions were made in 2008. A lot of the commission's immediate goals include improving safety and security measures for bikers and pedestrians, according to a draft of the plan. 'We are focused on removing barriers, so that all of us, depending on ability, can feel engaged in those activities,' said McCollough. 'If you can stay active, you can stay independent.' The plan will tackle major capital improvement projects — like connecting Northampton to New Haven, Connecticut, via the Columbia Greenway in Westfield. It also will ensure that both city streets and rural roads are safe for all people in transit, McCollough said. There also will be some smaller projects in the works. 'People tell us they just want to be able to get across the street from the post office to the library,' he said. In 2019, a statewide regional transportation plan encouraged increasing the number of bikers on the road, while also working to eliminate fatalities and injuries. Then, the pandemic, McCollough said, brought a surge of bikers who have remained on the roads and trails to this day. Anecdotally, he said, 'the number of bikers doubled and quadrupled in some locations, and we are still riding that curve.' McCollough pointed out that more bicyclists on roads — shared with passenger cars and other vehicles — means more people will be looking out for bikers down the line. 'There is safety in numbers,' he said. In that same vein, McCollough said rural roads can be just as dangerous as city streets for bicyclists and pedestrians. 'There are narrower roads, no shoulders and the lack of light are an invitation to disaster,' he said, urging the public to speak up about intersections or state highways that could use some guidance from the commission or the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. The commission already has received several survey responses from the public, he said. Mostly, people have said that they mainly care about the maintenance of the roads. 'We have these pristine, beautiful trails, and people want them to stay that way,' he said. 'They want them to be just as exciting for the next generation as it is for them.' People are encouraged to weigh in on what they would like to see in this next plan through an online survey, or by emailing or calling the commission. The survey will be available until June 30. Wastewater overflow in Connecticut River falls to 543 million gallons in 2024 Big Y recalls made-to-order sandwiches for salmonella concerns Police, Fire Dept. contend with explosive munition at Memorial Hall in Northampton Trump administration policies creating 'chilling effect' on smaller colleges Read the original article on MassLive.
Boston Globe
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Boston Globe
Screech! Crash! Bang! This car collision chronicler has been snapping pictures of the (many) by his house.
He sees it all right outside his window: A Prius, nose pushed in and pointed sideways on the grass. A maintenance van, its front bumper melded with the back of a Subaru. A wrecked sedan with its trunk crumpled, stressed-out owner with hand on forehead. It's the same thing over and over and it's driving him crazy, just like it has for a slew of neighbors and elected leaders for years. Advertisement Lots of cars crash in lots of intersections, but Iaccarino believes this one stands out. Related : Since he moved in 2 1/2 years ago, data from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation show there were 23 crashes at that intersection, although officials caution that number may be incomplete. MassDOT has dubbed it one of the state's ' In an interview, Judy Pineda Neufeld, a city councilor whose ward includes the intersection, called it 'one of the worst in the city.' Joe Curtatone, Somerville's mayor from 2004 to 2022, said even during his term it was 'one of those intersections you tell your kids to pay attention to.' Ever since he moved to his spot overlooking the intersection, Iaccarino has been complaining to the state's Department of Conservation and Recreation that something needed to be done. (Asked about the intersection, a city spokesperson deferred to DCR.) Advertisement 'Don't take my word for it,' he said on a recent afternoon, peering out over this busy crossroads. 'Look at the photos.' There are many, many photos. For more than two years, Iaccarino has been meticulously documenting crashes here, hoping the volume of evidence would move state officials to make changes he believes would save countless bumpers — and maybe even lives. Somerville resident Ari Iaccarino takes photos of the frequent crashes he sees out his window overlooking an intersection. Ari Iaccarino Now, there is news to celebrate. As part of planned maintenance, state officials said this month that safety updates will be installed as early as this summer. Iaccarino said it's long overdue, as this spot has been trouble for years, with too many cars trying to crisscross a too-busy roadway all at once. 'I would drive by this yellow house and think, man, it would suck to live there with all the traffic and potential accidents,' he said. Then fate brought them together two years ago. 'This was the only [apartment] open at an affordable price. It's funny how life works out like that.' Related : Now, 'gainfully unemployed' as he describes it, he works from a home office that overlooks the intersection, where wide windows give it the feel of an air-traffic controller tower — only with agitated commuters instead of pilots and an environment where he has zero sway over the chaos below. 'I feel like I'm running Newark Airport over here,' he said, referring to the New Jersey transit hub recently Advertisement First responders converged at the scene of another crash. Ari Iaccarino When Iaccarino hears, or sees, a crash, he races to the window to snap photos on his phone. Then he heads outside, where he talks to the owners of the cars and urges them to complain to the state. 'I actually wrote to DCR and my reps a pretty frustrated email after my puppy and I almost got hit here,' he said. 'If you guys don't put up a 'no right on red sign,' I will.' He Among the troubles at the intersection. Ari Iaccarino Few others have paid as much attention to the chaos. Except Sam Lakkis, who owns the Sam's Gas service station that is also wedged into the intersection. 'There's always an accident,' Lakkis said, waving a cigarette at the roadway. Lakkis said he tells mechanics not to drive through it and makes them do road tests for cars in the shop elsewhere. 'I witness it. I know it's bad,' he said. A chewed up traffic pole in one corner, scraped repeatedly by oncoming cars, is a reminder not to stand too close to the road while waiting to cross the crosswalk, as are the pieces of obliterated headlights that litter the grass. 'We've adapted to it,' said Iaccarino's neighbor Sonny Hadley, who lives upstairs. 'We know the do's and don'ts. But I'm more in fear of something happening to someone else.' Change is coming. A DCR spokesperson said late last week that agency engineers studied the intersection and would add 'several safety improvement measures' to it, alongside changes on other parts of the parkway. They include a new left-turn arrow, more time added between when lights in the intersection turn from red to green, and new cameras that can be used to help adjust the timing further, as needed. DCR will also put up new 'yield to pedestrian' signage. Related : Advertisement That all has the support of Iaccarino, although he said he still wants 'no turn on red' signs installed. (DCR said it would study the possible impact of doing so and consider adding those, too, which would likely slow traffic in the often-gridlocked strip of road.) 'Great news!' he said in an email when he heard of the plan. 'Sometimes the best compromise is one where everyone doesn't walk away with everything they want.' At least they get to walk away. A traffic incident in the intersection sent one car off the road and into a grassy area. Ari Iaccarino Spencer Buell can be reached at
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Portion of Route 202 in Shutesbury closed due to tractor-trailer rollover
SHUTESBURY, Mass. (WWLP) – A portion of Route 202 in Shutesbury is closed after a tractor-trailer rollover Monday afternoon. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation states that both sides of Route 202 are closed at Prescott Road. All traffic is being diverted, and drivers are being asked to seek an alternate route. No injuries have currently been reported at this time. Pittsfield to undergo street improvement projects throughout the week 22News will update this story as soon as additional information is released. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
