Thu, 04/07/2022 - 8:45am

SUSAN JOHNS

Example of the stenciling planned in Wiscasset for Federal Street and Route 1. Courtesy of MDOT

Courtesy of MDOT

Example of the stenciling planned in Wiscasset for Federal Street and Route 1. Courtesy of MDOT

Courtesy of MDOT

Wiscasset and the state plan to emphasize the 25 mph speed limit to Federal Street and Route 1 motorists. State Traffic Engineer Stephen Landry at Maine Department of Transportation told Wiscasset Newspaper April 6, the state is funding lighted, solar-powered signs and stenciled, painted squares on the roadway on Federal and on Route 1 on both the north and south ends of town. The signs and squares will go where the 25 mph zone starts, Landry said in an email response to questions.

The lights run along the signs’ perimeter, Landry said.

Town Manager Dennis Simmons brought up the plan at a selectmen’s meeting April 5, when Federal Street resident Jorge Pena raised concern over speeding he said continues despite neighbors’ signs to slow down and police “religiously” patrolling. Federal has two schools and has “older people like me who have to cross the street to collect our mail,” Pena said. “Nobody stops, nobody slows down.”

With Wiscasset Speedway on nearby West Alna Road, Federal Street is near a racing area, but is not one, Pena told the meeting at the town office and on Zoom and carried live on YouTube. View the recording at https://youtu.be/cuV4-7-i5tM

Simmons credited Police Chief Larry Hesseltine’s efforts to get the state’s help. “We’re actually a pilot project with the state for this ... So congratulations to the chief for pulling that off,” Simmons said.

Landry said he hopes to get the squares painted “toward the mid to end of April. As (for) the signs, it will be whenever they come in. We are at the mercy of the vendor for delivery. It’s a supply chain thing.”

Reached via email April 6, Hesseltine commented: “I think it's awesome that the state can step out and assist municipalities with traffic-related safety concerns. It shows that we have a working partnership and will work together to address (those) concerns.”

Hesseltine said he pursued the help after the latest accident at the intersection of Bath and Bradford roads and Lee Street. “There is also a crosswalk at this intersection and it's an accident waiting to happen. Vehicles are consistently speeding in these areas and these signs will be a better tool to grab drivers' attention that they are entering a 25 mph speed zone,” Hesseltine said. “With the added signage and increased enforcement efforts, we hope to send a message to people traveling these roads to slow down.”

He noted speeding fines start at $114, increase to $278, and double in school and construction zones.

The spots getting the signs and squares are not the only ones Hesseltine has concerns over. He said in the past five years the department has responded to nine accidents at the intersection of Lowelltown and Indian Roads and Willow Lane. He met recently with Public Works Director Ted Snowden, who he said has also received complaints from residents in that area. The town has tried for several years to increase awareness of the stop signs at the end of Indian Road and Willow Lane, “but our efforts do not seem to be working. People are still running that stop sign that is clearly visible,” Hesseltine said. He said Snowden is looking into placing red light-emitting diode (LED) stop signs there.

How did Pena feel hearing about the plan for Federal Street and Route 1? He said April 6, “I felt really good because both the police chief and the town manager are responding to this continuous problem with people speeding through town.”