LYNN — Resident Juliana Lara said she is concerned about the increase in car crashes occurring at the intersection of Washington and Laighton streets.
Lara, 42, along with her husband and in-laws live next to the intersection at 104 Washington St. She said over the past three months, accidents involving cars crashing into other cars, bikes and houses located at the intersection have become more frequent.
On the evening of Dec. 20, 2021, a vehicle crashed near Lara’s residence, severely damaging a guard rail near her home. The vehicle went over the guard rail and stopped at the sidewalk. There were no injuries reported, but Lara expressed worry that another car could hurt residents living near the complex.
On Wednesday, Feb. 16, two car crashes were reported at the intersection of Washington and Laighton streets at 8:42 p.m. and 9:22 p.m.
Lara, who observed the crashes, said she saw a woman jump out of one of the vehicles and start yelling that her car could catch fire due to the engine and heating being active during the crash.
The problem is that Washington Street is a two-lane street and does not have a stop sign or other preventive measures to stop motorists from colliding into other vehicles traveling from Laighton Street, Lara said.
“I asked the mayor’s office if they could put in a stop light or some speed bumps,” Lara said. “The office then said I should reach out to my ward councilor, which I did and I asked the same thing.”
According to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) Crash Data Portal, there have been 28 crashes at this cross section from 2019-22. Seventeen of these crashes were reported with no injuries and only property damages, 10 crashes were reported as non-fatal injuries and one crash was classified as unknown.
Washington and Laighton streets are both located in Ward 4, which is represented by City Councilor Richard Colucci. Colucci said he talked with Lara and agreed that the intersection was dangerous because it is a high-traffic area.
“I’m going to try and see if we can get a four-way stop sign installed at the intersection,” Colucci said. “I put a request in for the Traffic Commission so it will be on next month’s agenda.”
The Traffic Commission is composed of five members, who are responsible for discussing and weighing traffic-related items such as bike lanes, residential parking and stop signs.
The commission meets every month to vote on these matters before sending them to the City Council for a final vote. It is expected to meet next in the middle of March.
