Still Driving TOO FAST on Pond Street

This time a Woburn ambulance and car collided head-on near a curve on Pond Street (67-73 Pond Street). The posted speed limit is 30MPH and during during winter snowstorms it is incumbent upon drivers to travel at a safe speed for the current conditions. It is not just drivers, but pedestrians who are at risk (note the car on the new sidewalk). Given the snowy/slippery conditions, this resident contends that traffic should not have been traveling more than 15-20MPH. Someone will need to consult the accident report to get the details on this collision.



Immediately after the accident was cleared, traffic returned to driving as speeds that are likely in excess of the speed limit and are certainly in excess of what is safe in the snow (though thankfully the DPW was out in force plowing and sanding after the accident).

One neighbor recently recounted a close call when shoveling with his son. Moments after sending his child in to warm up, a car slid off the road into the exact place where his son had been moments before. Many of us have had our cars hit or mirrors taken off when parked on the street. It is clear that traffic is traveling too fast and therefore jeopardizing the safety of pedestrians as well as other cars on the road.

It is interesting to note that a speed study was conducted on Pond Street in September 2009. Despite the fact that the study was skewed towards lower recorded speeds (the police put up a speed-recording trailer and pre-construction utility marking was taking place during the study), the results show that drivers routinely ignore the posted speed limits. Speeds recorded ranged from a low of 27MPH to a high of 39MPH (would likely have been higher without the police radar trailer). This tells us that the slowest car travels at just under the maximum speed permitted and the fastest recorded was almost 10MPH over the maximum speed limit. In fact, during this study period, the average driver traveled at about 34MPH indicating that the majority of drivers are traveling in excess of 34MPH even with the police speed trailer.

The Board of Selectmen acknowledged the traffic speed and volume issues on Pond Street and committed to the residents that they would be addressed. Keep checking back for updates and developments.