SAUGUS — Residents shared their concerns with the Board of Selectmen about the traffic lights at the intersection of Howard Street and Main Street.
Board Chair Debra Panetta introduced the topic, agreeing that there was always traffic there, no matter the time of day.
Howard Street resident Laura Flynn approached the podium on the matter, saying the issue began in June 2016 when the Department of Conservation and Recreation changed the lights at Lynn Fells Parkway and Main Street.
“The lights did not sync with our lights that we control at Main Street and Howard Street. … That means that vehicles that were turning off of Howard Street no longer could make a right-hand turn because there was no longer a green light for them to go ever to cross over the Fellsway,” she said.
Flynn said the cars at the Village Park Shopping Center also have no place to go under the new cycle. She noted that she worked with former Selectman Corinne Riley and Rep. Donald Wong to put a sign telling drivers not to block the intersection, along with a painted “X.”
“They still block the intersection because … the light at the Fells and Main Street, regardless that the sync doesn’t work, it turns red; the light at Howard Street and Main Street stays green,” she said.
Flynn said drivers clog the intersection, making it impossible for Howard Street and Village Park drivers to go anywhere.
“That’s why people in the left lane turn right to try and make a left-hand turn. It’s desperation, or you are never getting off Howard Street,” she said. ” … I can’t leave my house anymore.”
Flynn emphasized that DCR caused the problem.
Selectman Frank Federico said that syncing the node would trigger the lights to turn green at the same time. He also said an issue was that when a walk button was struck the lights would be unsynced.
“From the town’s contractor that was out there, and it happens that they’re also DCR’s contractor … the DPW director asked is there a time parameter in which it stopped working, and our contractor had mentioned that there was no way to tell when it actually stopped,” he said.
Federico said Town Manager Scott Crabtree has composed a letter to Sen. Brendan Crighton about the issue.
“We’ve spent a lot of money over the years since 2016 trying to get them (DCR) to coordinate the lights, and every time the lights are coordinated, it only lasts for a little while,” Crabtree said.
Panetta was able to find a subject discussed 11 years ago about the Lynn Fells Parkway and Main Street lights.
“We have been trying now for so long to get this resolved. … We’re going to continue to try and get this resolved,” Panetta said.
Mike Mini, of Juniper Drive, said that the lights have “created a monster” on Juniper Drive.
Andrea Krisiak, of Harmon Road, thanked the selectmen for addressing the problem, and said she thinks that three or four issues cause the problem, including people using the left-turn lane to go straight.
“One of the bigger problems that I have seen in that little tiny intersection is one car, or two cars, or more that don’t belong there is all it takes to add to the blocking,” Krisiak said.
