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IPSWICH — All roads may lead to Rome, but are they talked about quite as much as Five Corners?
The infamous intersection, also known as Market Square, formerly known as Quint’s Corner, was discussed by the Select Board last week during a wide-ranging talk on highway projects.
First to get the show on the, eh, road were Brian Hone and Chris Chapman, chair and co-chair of the Pedestrian and Cycling Advisory Board.
They wanted to talk about different projects around town including Jeffreys Neck Road, High Street, and Route 1A from South Village Green to the Hamilton line.
Road raising
Because of rising sea levels and more powerful winter storms, the town wants to raise a section of Jeffreys Neck Road to maintain access to Jeffreys Neck and Little Neck.
The road currently has wide shoulders in place but regulators required guard rails because the new causeway will be higher than the surrounding marsh.
That has long been flagged as dangerous since pedestrians and cyclists would be forced into a confined space with motorized vehicles.
The new paved section would total 24 feet wide, DPW Director Rick Clarke told the board.
Hone urged the board to make the new road safer. “If we don’t discuss it, then the decision is made,” he said.
Clarke suggested a 10.5-foot travel lane, which would leave a 1.5-foot shoulder for cyclists. He said pedestrians could walk in the area outside the guard rails.
He said the travel lane could even be reduced to 10 feet, which would give cyclists two feet.
“Maybe the solution is to lower the speed,” said Chairman Michael Dougherty.
“You have to,” Hone replied.
Dougherty said the narrower travel lane would force drivers to slow their pace.
Route 1A
MassDOT also plans to resurface County Road (Route 1A) as far as Hamilton. Hone said a lot of bicycle and pedestrian traffic uses the same road.
Selectperson Linda Alexson said there used to be a sidewalk along the road and that the town should ask for it to be reinstated as part of the $1.9 million project. That is scheduled for spring of 2029, according to MassDOT.
The board voted unanimously to send a letter to MassDOT urging it to rebuild the sidewalks as part of the project.
High Street
The section of High Street from Lords Square to North Main Street is set to undergo some serious disturbance in the coming years.
First off, the Wastewater Department plans to upgrade underground sewer lines. Then the DPW will follow to repave and lay down a new layout.
That work is set to start next year.
Hone’s board said the historic street should be part of a downtown loop that provides safe cycle paths for kids to get to school. It described the loop as “the highest priority for safety,” recommending a mixed-use sidewalk and cycle path for younger kids.
Nearby projects include the County Street bridge and a new layout at the Poplar Street intersection. The state will tackle the bridge within the next two years, Clarke said.
On the intersection, town officials agreed the area was dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists.
Clarke presented a $0.5 million plan that would change the layout and add a short left-turn lane onto Argilla Road from County Road. The area is prone to Crane Beach traffic backups during the summer.
Five Corners
Long paved with good intentions, the state’s plan for Five Corners is now in the afterlife after the select board rejected the $14.5 million plan.
Clarke said the town would forfeit state grants and a slimmed-down version would cost Ipswich voters around $3.2 million.
Work there includes some realignment at North Main Street, bump outs at crosswalks, ADA improvements and road markings, he said.
Unlike the state plan, there would be no traffic light, which seemed to provoke a good deal of local opposition.
