The hardest part of getting through Wellesley Middle School for our family involved me, after dropping off the kids, having to make that right on Rte. 9 East from Kingsbury Street, then shifting into the left lane to U-turn onto Rte. 9 West to get to work (OK, maybe my kids have a different perspective on the WMS years).
So it’s good to see the Massachusetts Department of Transportation going to work this summer on the Kingsbury Street/Rte. 9 intersection, which is being reworked as part of a broader MassDOT effort to improve Rte. 9 (also known as Worcester Street in these parts).
This intersection project was a topic of discussion heading into last year’s Town Meeting (article 26), where $600,000 in funding was approved. The discussion going into the meeting (including public forums in March) was whether to create a T-shaped intersection at the junction of Kingsbury and Rte. 9 (Option 1), or add traffic signals to the U-turns nearby the intersection on both the east- and west-bound sides of Rte. 9 (Option 2). Option 2, which is designed to make it safer for drivers to wait in line to make U-turns, won out. You can really dive into the plans here.
MassDOT says the signal installations are expected to be completed this year, while resurfacing of Rte. 9 won’t be finished until 2018.
