A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 21-21, regarding a report on traffic calming options in the vicinity of Pemberton Street and Fairfield Street

MEMORANDUM To: Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager From: Joseph E. Barr, Director Date: September 13, 2021 Subject: Awaiting Report 21-21 – Traffic calming options in the vicinity of Pemberton Street and Fairfield Street This memo is in response to Order 3 from the April 5, 2021 City Council Meeting (Awaiting Report 21-21) regarding traffic safety concerns in the area of Pemberton Street and Fairfield Street related to vehicle speeds and children traveling to and from Bergin Park and the Peabody Elementary School. Pemberton Street functions as a local access neighborhood street, restricted to one-way travel northbound/towards Rindge Avenue in the segment north of Fairfield Street. South and west of Fairfield Street, Pemberton Street becomes two-way until it ends at Sherman Street. Fairfield Street is one-way southbound towards Pemberton Street, with STOP control for Fairfield Street at the intersection with Pemberton Street. There is a crosswalk across the Fairfield Street leg of the intersection, but no crosswalk is provided across Pemberton Street. Both streets have been recently posted with new 20 MPH Safety Zone signage. To assess existing traffic conditions, staff from the Traffic, Parking, and Transportation Department staff visited Pemberton Street during a weekday afternoon period in May 2021. Staff collected data on traffic volumes and speeds using a handheld radar speed detector. Staff recorded that over the course of an hour, 51 vehicles passed through the intersection on Pemberton Street in the northbound direction. The average speed of vehicles was 18 miles per hour while the 85th percentile speed was 20 miles per hour. All vehicles observed during that time period were traveling at or below 24 miles per hour. Staff also worked with the Cambridge Police Department (CPD) to research any crash history at the intersection. A review of CPD records indicated that there were no reported crashes at this location over the past three calendar years.

These data indicate that the traffic volumes and speeds are relatively low and would not warrant additional traffic calming measures on Pemberton Street, particularly given the lack of reported crashes. Staff did note that the existing skewed geometry of the intersection results in a long crosswalk for pedestrians crossing Fairfield Street. Fairfield Street will be reconstructed as part of an upcoming Department of Public Works project that is scheduled for Fiscal Year 2026 in the Five Year Sidewalk and Street Reconstruction Plan, which will include a community engagement process. Through this outreach and design process, the design team can evaluate and potentially implement improvements to crosswalks at that intersection, as well as potentially revisiting the need for traffic calming improvements. It is also important to note that while there is maintenance paving work taking place on Pemberton Street this summer, this type of work does not provide an opportunity to implement traffic calming measures.