ROCKINGHAM, Vt. – On Tuesday, May 2, the Rockingham Selectboard discussed using the 2023 Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) Grant to pay for a scoping study of the intersection of Atkinson and School Streets.
Municipal Manager Scott Pickup said part of the grant application required Rockingham to work with a consultant to hire the engineer for the study. The board had earlier approved Windham Regional Commission (WRC), who recommended Vanasse Hangen Brustlin (VHB), who are also the engineering firm on the Depot Street Bridge project slated to begin in 2025.
Rockingham, with support from the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) and VTrans, is seeking to improve the safety and mobility of all users – motorists, pedestrians and bicyclists – at the busy intersection between Atkinson and School Streets. The four-way stop sign sees heavy traffic; Route 5, a state highway and truck route, also connects Central Elementary School and the Bellows Falls Middle School to neighborhoods and downtown.
VHB said they have “extensive experience developing similar scoping studies.” Rockingham’s request includes recommendations related to pedestrian and vehicle safety, accessibility, and efficiency at the intersection, particularly at peak hours around the schedule of both schools.
VHB’s approach includes collaboration with stakeholders, balancing the competing needs of the environment, development of realistic and constructible recommendations, working with VTrans, and communication with the town.
There will be data collections, mapping, and meetings for the public to share their concerns. Information will be posted on the town website, www.rockinghamvt.org.
The project team will evaluate three alternatives, one of which includes the addition of traffic signals. Those alternatives deemed viable will be developed into a conceptual plan for presentation. Some of the issues VHB must take into consideration are right of way, utility conflicts, any natural or cultural constraints, and permitting requirements.
A final public presentation will provide findings and recommendations of the study. VHB will take consideration of comments and feedback to develop the final scoping report.
Based upon a notice to proceed in May, the local concerns meeting will be in June or July, with a final report preparation in March or April of 2024.
The Rockingham Selectboard meetings are on the first and third Tuesdays of each month in the Lower Theater of the Bellows Falls Opera House at 6 p.m. The annual meeting of the Bellows Falls Village Trustees is Monday, May 15 at 7 p.m. at the Opera House, with voting on Tuesday, May 16 at the Masonic Temple.