Norwich just committed to a Complete Streets policy. What does that mean for city roads?
NORWICH — On Monday night, Norwich made a commitment to the idea that the streets of Norwich should be accessible to anyone, not just people riding in cars.
The city council adopted a Complete Streets policy.
Under the policy, Norwich would have to consider access to the roads by bicyclists and various pedestrians, including those with disabilities, families traveling as a group and people of different ages. The idea is to make "better use of our roadway real estate as it stands,” said Assistant City Planner Dan Daniska at the Monday city council meeting.
“We’re no longer focused on moving traffic, it’s moving people,” Daniska said.
Some ways this can be achieved, according to Monday’s meeting minutes, can include marking bike lanes and adding crosswalks, Americans with Disabilities Act compliant curb ramps and bike parking. Measures that don’t concern the traveling surface itself are also mentioned, including adding lights and greenery.
Daniska said it wouldn’t apply to highways, larger roads, or rural roads, per Connecticut Department of Transportation definitions.
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Despite the ordinance passing this week, Public Works Director Pat McLaughlin said his department has implemented Complete Streets philosophy for some time now. One example is the work on Dunham St., which includes bike lanes. It will be finished this summer, as work last year was delayed due to supply chain issues.
Formalizing a policy already being practiced helps with grant applications for those projects, McLaughlin said. He also said there are sometimes extra costs, which come from making sure all the details are done correctly, like safe sidewalks and prominent crosswalks.
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Daniska also said Planning and Neighborhood Services would work on a plan for implementing Complete Streets, based on research, to “give a roadmap to plan 10, 20 years into the future.” One example Daniska mentioned was an intern for the department last summer who focused on documenting sidewalk conditions around the city.
As for the policy’s impact, McLaughlin focused on safety for all users.
“A lot of times, we have pedestrians on our public right of ways, so we should accommodate those people,” McLaughlin said. “If you don’t, you might create unsafe conditions to the pedestrians.”
Norwich Mayor Peter Nystrom said the policy leads to both safety benefits and economic benefits. This would include seeing the value of land taken for these projects.
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“Anytime you build a road, you impact that whole area of your town, so if you take in those other factors, I think we’re all better off for it,” he said.
With the new policy, Nystrom wants to see if the state’s Route 82 roundabout plan is compliant with the city’s policy. As well, he wants to see if it’s possible to move businesses affected by the construction to other parts of Route 82.
For upcoming projects, McLaughlin said bicycle lanes, sidewalk work, and improved crossings for the New London Turnpike, from Norwichtown to Route 82, are being designed right now.
This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Norwich adopts Complete Streets policy for cars, cyclists, pedestrians
