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James Bairaktaris 9/14/22 James Bairaktaris 9/14/22

I-95 Southbound Shut Down for Shooting Investigation; Heavy Traffic Hits Local Streets

The State Department of Transportation has announced that I-95 southbound is shut down through Westport’s exits 18 and 17 this afternoon as the Connecticut State Police continue an ongoing investigation. Unofficial reports cite the investigation stems from possible evidence tracking along the I-95 corridor, while the Fairfield Police Department announced that I-95 will be shut down from Exit 18 until Exit 10 for the police activity. Fairfield County towns along Route 1 are reporting heavy traffic as both private cars and interstate trucks avoid the shutdown and hit the local streets on their journeys to all points south. Most of the Connecticut State traffic cameras have been turned off from Darien through Westport, though the ones remaining on show a completely deserted freeway. WestportLocal.com for more information as it becomes available.

UPDATE

Darien Police Department Press Release

At approximately 3:42 AM on Wednesday 09-14-2022, a Darien Police Sergeant observed a vehicle operating slowly S/B on Noroton Ave. in the area of Maple Street. The vehicle and operator then approached the Sergeant and reported that two subjects within the vehicle had been shot.

Darien officers provided immediate medical care to the victims; Darien EMS responded to the scene and transported two male subjects to Stamford Hospital for treatment. Darien PD officers remained on scene to secure the scene/vehicle and to assist the Connecticut State Police.

This investigation into this shooting incident is being conducted by the Connecticut State Police and the CSP Western District Major Crime Squad. There is no ongoing threat to the public at this time. Maple Street will be closed at Noroton Ave. for some period of time this morning as the investigation continues.

There are no indications that any crime occurred within the Town of Darien. All further inquiries concerning this investigation should be directed to the Connecticut State Police.

****** End of Release *****

Donald B. Anderson

Chief of Police

James Bairaktaris 12/20/21 James Bairaktaris 12/20/21

Talking Transportation: Ways to Quiet the Highway Corridors

Highway Sound Barriers

Building and maintaining our highways is expensive. But here’s a quiz question: on interstates 95 and 84, what costs a half-million dollars a mile to construct? The answer: sound barriers.

Why are we spending that kind of money to surround our interstate highways simply to protect the peace and quiet of their immediate neighbors? Living that close to a highway built in the 1950s comes with the twin costs of increased noise and air pollution along with the benefits of proximity to the highways.

Do you have sympathy for people who move near airports and then complain about the jets? Neither do I. But the solution to highway noise is not to create a walled canyon paid for by others.

Sound barriers, in my view, are a waste of precious resources. They don’t reduce accidents, improve safety or do anything about congestion. And they’re a magnet for graffiti artists. Three miles of sound barriers on both sides of an interstate would buy another M8 railcar for Metro-North, taking 100 passengers out of their cars on I-95.

Worse yet, Connecticut’s hard, wooden sound barriers (styled after Fort Apache) really just reflect the sound, not absorb it, bouncing the noise further afield. But there are alternatives:

1) Why not sound-proof the homes? That has worked well for neighbors of big airports and would be a lot cheaper than miles of sound barriers. Plus, insulation against sound also insulates against energy loss, saving money.

2) Rubberized asphalt. Let’s reduce the highway noise at its source, literally where the “rubber meets the road”. Using the latest in rubberized asphalt some highways have seen a 12-decibel reduction in noise. And rubberized asphalt, as its name implies, is made from old tires… about 12 million a year that would otherwise be junked.

3) Pay for it yourself. Create special taxing zones in noisy neighborhoods and let those home owners pay for their sound barriers. They’re the ones who are benefiting, so shouldn’t they be the ones who pay? And that investment will certainly be recouped in increased property values.

4) Penalize the noise makers. Let’s crack down on truckers who “Jake brake”, downshifting noisily to slow their speed instead of using their real brakes. And motorcyclists or those cars with busted mufflers, they too should be penalized.

5) Go electric. Electric cars are virtually silent. And there are electronic ways of using noise cancellation technology that, on a large scale, can induce quiet at a lower price than building wooden barricades.

6) Go absorbent. Where there is room, erect earthen berms alongside the highway which will absorb the sound. Or if you must construct sound barriers, fill them with sound absorbing material, treating the noise like a sponge, not bouncing it off a hard, flat reflective surface.

Our interstates, especially I-95, are carrying far more traffic than they were ever planned to handle. And there is no sign of it decreasing. In Fairfield County the rush hour starts about 6 am and runs continuously until 8 pm without a break.

If our state’s economy depends on these highways we will have to live with the karmic cost of a little noise. But if it’s too much to take, why ask others to pay for its remediation when immediate neighbors are the only ones benefiting from that spending?

About Jim Cameron:

Jim Cameron has been a commuter advocate for over 30 years, with a special focus on the Metro North railroad. He spent nearly two decades on the Connecticut Metro North Commuter Council, and most recently founded The Commuter Action Group. Jim Cameron’s Talking Transportation was a popular column on the former WestportNow.com prior to its cessation, and joins The Westport Local Press and several other online community organizations. A resident of Darien - he serves on its Representative Town Meeting and is Program Director of the town government TV station, DarienTV79. He can be reached at CommuterActionGroup@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter: @CTRailCommuters

James Bairaktaris 10/18/21 James Bairaktaris 10/18/21

Talking Transportation: Slow Down for the Safety of Others

Cars vs. People

Speed kills… and I don’t just mean drugs.

Speeding on our roads is linked to over 38,000 deaths each year in the US. That’s almost 730 deaths a week… 100 a day.

If a hundred people die in a plane crash, we go nuts. (Never mind that COVID deaths average about 1400 per day). But if they die on our roads we see it as the cost of doing business. As one blogger put it… “it’s high time to stop sacrificing safety on the altar of speed”.

Just listen to I-95 or the Merritt Parkway at night. They sound like a raceway.

Most of those 38,000 deaths are pedestrians or bicyclists. But tens of thousands of those deaths involve the motorists in the cars tied to the “accidents” caused by distracted driving, drink or drugs or fatigue.

Federal statistics show if you’re hit by a vehicle going 20 mph you have a 90% chance of surviving. But if the car or truck is going at 40 miles an hour your survival chances are just 10%. Speed kills. So why are we all driving so fast?

Because we have so far to travel and want to save time getting there. In Connecticut, our homes and our work are far apart because we can’t afford (or don’t chose) to live closer to our jobs. And either because we don’t want to (or chose not to), we don’t take mass transit, preferring the cocoon of our cars.

Sure, seat belts in cars save lives… if you wear them. And air bags and other tech in cars are helping us avoid many accidents. But the death toll keeps climbing, especially where cars occupy the same driving space as bikes and pedestrians.

Consider New York City.

In 1990 there were 700 traffic deaths in NYC. But by 2018 that number had dropped to 202, thanks to “Vision Zero”, Mayor de Blasio’s ambitious, billion dollar plan to reduce road deaths to zero by 2024. But more bike lanes, sidewalks and a 25 mph city-wide speed limit have, of late, made little difference. This year saw an uptick in deaths, most of them involving bicyclists driving on city streets that lack bike lanes. And on average one pedestrian dies in NYC every three days.

Advocates blame increased speeding and lack of enforcement.

In Connecticut we have nowhere near the same density of urban traffic fighting for space with folks on two feet or two wheels, but neither do we have sidewalks in many towns. Or bike lanes. But we do have speeders, scofflaws and insufficient enforcement.

When it’s not crawling bumper-to-bumper, try driving 55 mph on the Merritt, I-95 or I-84 and see what happens. As a CT State Trooper once told me as we cruised along at about 75 mph with the flow of traffic, “I look for the driver likely to cause an accident” by weaving or not signaling lane changes. Even those enforcing our laws admit they don’t or can’t keep up with motorists’ need for speed.

Even when the cops do look for speeders, legal radar detectors and laser-jammers help violators avoid getting caught. Attempts to install red-light cameras in Connecticut have always failed due to a combination of Big Brother paranoia and fears of the safety tech being turned into an unending revenue spigot for Towns and cities.

Weather conditions of course exacerbate the problem, especially with those driving the tanks we call SUVs who think they are immune to the laws of physics.

Bottom line: can’t we all just chill out a bit and think of the safety of others if not ourselves?

About Jim Cameron:

James Bairaktaris 10/17/21 James Bairaktaris 10/17/21

Traffic Woes: No Construction or Accidents to Blame

Heavy southbound traffic has again crippled the community. According to the State Department of Transportation, no major traffic accidents have been reported on I-95 or the Merritt Parkway in the past several hours- and no major accidents were reported in Westport, either. “Congestion” is the only way to label the immense back-ups. The DoT said that nearly 15 miles of both the Merritt and I-95 are both heavily congested into late tonight. “We’re trapped” a motorist yelled as they remained stopped on Greens Farms Road around 8 this evening - another victim to a traffic re-route from apps such as Waze that navigate traffic onto side streets when the interstate becomes congested. Traffic on Post Road was backed up through the length of town, with Greens Farms Road backed up from Bridge Street past Nyala Farms Road - evidence that traffic is not only escaping the highway from Exit 18, but even earlier at 19 and possibly further.

James Bairaktaris 10/11/21 James Bairaktaris 10/11/21

Talking Transportation: Venturing to Vermont by Train

Enjoying Vermont by Train

Like many, I love Vermont. But I’m not crazy about getting there.

From my home to Burlington VT is about 300 miles. By car, that’s at least five hours and about $50 in gas roundtrip. Flying may seem quicker, but with the airport drive it’s not much faster and will set you back about $250.

But there’s another alternative: Amtrak.

There are actually three trains a day that will take you to (or close to) Vermont:

THE VERMONTER:

Your best choice, this train runs daily from Washington DC to St Albans VT (right next to Burlington), coming through Stamford at about noontime each day. It also stops in Bridgeport and New Haven before heading up the Connecticut River Valley to Vermont stops in Brattleboro, Windsor, Montpelier, Waterbury (Stowe) and Essex Junction (Burlington), to name but a few.

It’s not the fastest run (Stamford to Essex Junction is 8 hours), but it’s certainly beautiful and relaxing. A frustrating reverse move at Palmer MA has been eliminated with new tracks, shaving an hour off the run.

The newly refurbished Amfleet seats in coach are comfy. There’s also business class seating (for a premium). The AmFood is tasty. The crew is great… and there’s even free WiFi. Despite the many stops, the train hits 80 mph in many stretches on smooth, welded rails. And the views of fall foliage can’t be beat.

And remember: Amtrak runs in any kind of weather, so if you’re thinking of skiing this winter when there’s a blizzard and its 20 below zero, the train will get you there when airports and highways are closed.

THE ETHAN ALLEN EXPRESS:

If you’re heading to Rutland VT on the western side of the state, this is your train. Originating at NY’s Penn Station mid-afternoon, this train bypasses Connecticut and shoots up the Hudson Valley, arriving in Rutland just before 8 pm with stops in Saratoga Springs, Glens Falls and Castleton VT. There’s even a bus connection to Killington.

For Connecticut residents, the best strategy is to catch this train at Croton-Harmon (in Westchester County) where there’s plenty of paid parking available. The hope is that the Ethan Allen may be extended from Rutland north to Burlington in the coming years. And maybe from there to Montreal.

It offers the same kind of Amfleet cars, coach and business, AmCafé and free WiFi.

THE ADIRONDACK:

This daily train from NY’s Penn Station to Montreal doesn’t go through Vermont, but it used to get you close… if you didn’t mind a ferry boat ride. It’s not running again (yet) due to COVID, but there are hopes for its return before the new year.

It offered the same kind of seating, WiFi etc, but on this train you’re traveling with a much more international crowd of Quebecois. Alas, no poutine on the AmMenu. And until a few years ago they even ran a special dome car several days a week for the gorgeous scenery north of Albany.

Thanks to state subsidies and increasing ridership, fares on all of these Amtrak are very affordable: on The Vermonter, Stamford to Burlington (booked in advance) is just $69 one-way and kids are half-price.

So if you’re planning a vacation in The Green Mountain state, remember that getting there can be half the fun if you leave the driving to Amtrak… the “green” way to travel.