Bike West Hartford believes that it’s every kid’s right to exercise their freedom and build their confidence by living on safe neighborhood streets! Today, we are introducing a new advocacy campaign based on concerns we have heard from many local parents and kids: Slow Down for Kids!
West Hartford’s Vision Zero program has introduced significant positive changes to busier roads such as arterials that comprise the “High Injury Network.” However, neighborhood traffic calming is done through a totally different, archaic process that the average citizen may not understand or be able to navigate. Parents are often fruitlessly fighting with the town for years to get simple things like speed bumps on their streets.
Our Slow Down for Kids campaign aims to replace the Town’s overly complex, petition-based traffic calming process with immediate, proactive solutions. Our goal is to reduce speeds to 20 mph on neighborhood streets. We’re urging West Hartford to adopt a new safety standard for neighborhood streets, making 20 mph the expected limit, and to proactively install physical calming measures – especially speed bumps – to achieve this standard and to ensure safe, walkable, and bikeable neighborhoods for West Hartford’s children. We are advocating for a more results-oriented approach, without excessive process or years of meetings. We owe it to our children!
For reference, here is how Boston is using a similar strategy to address speeding on their neighborhood streets.
What can you do?
Please contact our town engineers, manager, and elected officials to ask them to streamline our current neighborhood traffic calming process, and to especially focus on slowing neighborhood speeds with speed bumps. Please note that although our campaign is focused on kids due to their vulnerability and the importance of building their independence, we are fighting for ALL West Hartford residents! If you support this effort but are not a parent, simply customize the language as needed! We encourage you to modify the language to suit your individual concerns and your own voice!
***Please also visit our table at the Halloween Stroll on Saturday, October 25 from 10:30-12:30 AM in West Hartford Center!***
Suggested email language (and click HERE for an auto-populated email!):
Subject: Slow Down for Kids: Please End the Excessive Process & Install Neighborhood Speed Bumps Now
Recipients: townmanager@westhartfordct.gov, towncouncil@westhartfordct.gov, greg.sommer@westhartfordct.gov
Dear West Hartford Town Leaders,
I am writing to you today as a concerned resident and parent. I strongly support the goals of the Vision Zero Action Plan. Thank you so much for your work on this program! However, I’d like to draw your attention to our neighborhood traffic calming process, which is a separate program for small residential streets. I believe the current process for neighborhood traffic calming does not do enough to protect our children.
The current process is outdated and overly complex. I want my children to be able to explore their own neighborhood, walk to school, and visit their friends. I am asking for you to please protect them by bringing neighborhood speeds down to 20 mph. The current requirements for endless meetings and petitions to get basic traffic calming measures, like speed bumps, is too difficult and time-consuming for both residents and Town staff.
Please immediately streamline the Neighborhood Traffic Calming Program! The time for lengthy studies and complex processes is over. I urge West Hartford to adopt a new safety standard for neighborhood streets, making 20 mph the expected limit, and to proactively install physical calming measures – especially speed bumps – to achieve this standard across all neighborhood streets.
Our kids deserve safe streets right outside their doors. We should not have to petition the Town for months or years to ensure basic safety where our kids live and play. Please prioritize the safety of our most vulnerable residents and take decisive, efficient action now.
Sincerely,
West Hartford Resident and Parent