East Side West Side

Improved safety is probably the most compelling reason for locating any Main Street sidewalk on the east side of the street, but there are others. (The roadway is too narrow along several sections to accommodate the addition of sidewalks on both sides.)

A web search turned up the Town Transportation Plan, which discusses the location of proposed sidewalks (page 4), along with priorities for developing and maintaining them (page 8). The search also found a map of New Canaan showing the proposed Pedestrian/ Bicycle/ Transit Plan.

Siting a sidewalk on the east side of Main Street would create a safe pedestrian path for the large, densely populated area between Main Street and East Avenue, and provide a “Walk to School” opportunity for middle and high school students living in that area. We are concerned about the alternative prospect: students dashing across Main Street to get to a sidewalk on the west side.

Residents of the area between Main Street and South Avenue already have easy access to the South Avenue sidewalks. With the simple addition of a crosswalk at Farm Road, a sidewalk on the east side of Main Street would still create a “loop” bordered by Main, Farm, South and the Center of Town

A sidewalk along the east side of Main Street would also provide walking access to the cemetery.

And then there are the basic construction efficiencies: among these, that the east side is flatter. There are 4 times as many banks along the west side that would need to be excavated as there are on the east side.

The east side is mostly free of utility poles; a primary electric power/ telephone/ cable route into downtown is strung on poles located along the west side of Main Street. A sidewalk on the east side wouldn’t have poles dotting the middle of it, impeding pedestrian passageway.

Tags: construction, location, main street, New Canaan, safety, sidewalks