The Milton Select Board wants the state to take immediate steps to improve safety at the intersection of Chickatawbut Road and Route 28 — rated one of the five most dangerous intersections in the state by the Department of Transportation — and then focus on long-term safety solutions along the entire Route 28 corridor in town.
In a letter to state Transportation Secretary James Tesler dated Nov. 7, the board said it was not sold on the state’s proposed remedy for making the area safer: a roundabout at the intersection of Route 28 and Chickatawbut Road.
The intersection is a gateway to the Blue Hills Reservation, provides access to traffic between Milton, Randolph, and Quincy, and is plagued by speeding cars and intense traffic congestion.
Advertisement
The state estimates the roundabout project would cost $7.2 million and could begin in the spring of 2024. It would take two construction seasons to complete.
“Mass DOT’s focus on this singular intersection means that the rest of the corridor is being ignored and improvements are further delayed,” the Select Board wrote.
And with the state-proposed roundabout at least two years away, “Mass DOT needs to make immediate improvements to increase safety,” the letter said.
The Select Board’s letter also criticized the state for going three years between public hearings on the matter and asked for more opportunities for public input, as well as a more robust examination of alternative traffic solutions. Mass DOT held a virtual hearing on Oct. 27, 2022; the Select Board said an earlier hearing was held in the summer of 2019.
Johanna Seltz can be reached at seltzjohanna@gmail.com.