Overview of Project

Brooks Road South at Natalie Drive Enhanced Pedestrian Crosswalk Project (project) consists of installing rapid rectangular flashing beacons, ADA curb ramps, curb bulb-out, pedestrian refuge island, slurry seal, vertical bollards to create separated bike lanes, and refresh striping. The project is partially funded by the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) grant which has allocated $240,600 towards the project.  

Construction Updates

The project area is of interest to the Town because of heavy pedestrian traffic due to its proximity to both Brooks Elementary and Windsor Middle School. Construction of the crosswalk improvement is projected to start May 22, 2023 and end when school is not in session at neighboring Brooks Elementary and Windsor Middle School. 

05/22/23: Phase 1 Traffic Control Plan - Lane Closure

The first phase of construction will begin at the southwest corner of Natalie Drive and Brooks Road South, which will necessitate a southbound lane closure on Brooks Road South between Foothill Drive and Pulteney Place. 

Project Benefits

1. Increase driver awareness to the presence of pedestrians – The installation of RRFBs at the project intersection would highlight the presence of pedestrians entering the crosswalk when activated by users.  RRFBs have been demonstrated through research to increase driver yielding to pedestrians.  Advanced yield markings (a.k.a. “shark’s teeth”) would provide additional visual cues to drivers to anticipate pedestrians at the crosswalk.
2. Enhance the visibility of pedestrians crossing the street – The curb extension on the southwest corner of the intersection would place pedestrians 10 feet further into the roadway, more directly in the line of sight of approaching drivers.  This enhanced visibility would be especially beneficial at this location, since elementary and middle school students would be the primary users of this intersection and are generally shorter than adults.
3. Reduce pedestrian crossing distance – The combination of the pedestrian refuge median and curb extension would reduce the crossing distance. The median would also enable pedestrians to cross one direction of traffic at a time by providing a protected location where they could wait for a gap in traffic to complete the crossing.
4. Reduce the number of conflict points – The roadway cross-section adjacent to the project intersection would be modified by reducing the number of travel lanes in each direction from two to one.  As a result, pedestrians would be required to cross only three lanes of vehicle traffic instead of five as currently configured and would eliminate the potential for multiple-threat crashes, where a driver in one lane may not be able to see a pedestrian due to a vehicle that has stopped at the crosswalk.
5. Establish a clearer path of travel for vehicles and bicycles – By eliminating one through lane in the northbound direction, the existing transition zone and merge along this segment would be eliminated.  In the southbound direction, in addition to the lane reduction, restriping would be needed as a result of the curb extension to shift the bike lane and provide guidance to bicyclists traveling through the intersection.  The elimination of the southbound travel lane would have the additional benefit of providing space to stripe a buffer between the bike lane and vehicle traffic along this block.

Outreach

The Town held a public open house in April 2022 at Windsor Middle School to present information, including maps and images, as well as answer any questions from the community. This open house was publicized on the Town's website and social media.