Stratford committee reviews Phase 2 Complete Streets design; safety concerns raised over Paradise Green bike lane

The Housatonic Greenway Complete Streets subcommittee of the Town of Stratford met February 7 to review Phase 2 (30%) design drawings for Main Street and adjacent segments, focusing attention on a proposed bike lane configuration near Paradise Green that members called potentially unsafe.

Committee chairman Harold Watson opened the meeting and said the session would focus on Phase 2 design materials prepared by MetroCOG and the project consultant. Town planner Smitha Etata and town engineer John Casey were present to walk the committee through four drawing panels showing proposed lane reallocations, bike boxes, crosswalk revisions and sidewalk connections. MetroCOG staff were expected to join but had not connected when the meeting began.

The most contested design element was the Paradise Green segment, where the plan places a bike lane outside a row of parallel parking. Resident and committee participant Mark DeBartolo said the layout created a real collision risk: "Here, you're gonna hit a person." Several members echoed concerns about drivers backing from parallel spaces into the bike lane and the possibility of dooring or pedestrians being struck. One staff presentation also estimated the change would eliminate about six on-street parking spaces on that block.

Business and circulation trade-offs surfaced repeatedly. Members noted that the state's preferred traffic-calming moves — reducing two through lanes to one in some segments — aim to slow traffic for safety but may increase congestion at peak times; local business owners, the committee said, had expressed worry about reduced capacity. The committee also discussed relocating bus stops to align with revised crosswalks; drawings show bus-stop relocation as an intention but do not fix a final bay location.

Alternatives discussed included routing bikes off Main Street around Paradise Green via Huntington Road and Fenelon Place, creating a bidirectional shared-use path on the green itself, or providing physical separation between parked cars and the bike lane (for example, short bollards or a protected curb). Watson and others noted that some rerouting ideas were raised in earlier plans (the committee referenced prior discussions dating back several years), and that MetroCOG and DOT would need to weigh in because state funding and project jurisdiction drive which changes can be made in the current scope.

Engineers said the drawings presented reflect a 60%/30% design process with DOT and stakeholder comments incorporated and that the consultant will evaluate alternatives for the Garden Street crossing and other high-concern locations. Committee members asked staff and the engineer to regroup with the MetroCOG consultant to develop options that reduce risk at Paradise Green and to return the topic to the regular subcommittee agenda for further review.

The meeting closed after the committee agreed to document concerns in writing and ask the consultant and MetroCOG to provide follow-up analysis. A motion to adjourn carried by voice vote.