ATHOL – Communities in the North Quabbin have received federal funding to help make their roads safer and improve traffic enforcement.
The Healey-Driscoll administration recently announced $13 million in federal funding to help make roads safer across Massachusetts by preventing crashes, strengthening traffic enforcement, and protecting drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists, according to a press release.
The Petersham Police Department was awarded $13,320; the Athol Police will receive $9,422; and Royalston Police will get $7,991.
Petersham Police Chief Peter Buck explained the money will be used to support campaigns like “Click It or Ticket” and “Under the Influence, Under Arrest,” as well as provide safe roadway use by pedestrians, bicyclists and equestrians.
“We will be using them on Route 32, being North Main Street and South Main Street, Route 122, which is Barre Road and New Salem Road, and Route 32A, which is Hardwick Road,” Buck said. “The grant does not restrict us to those roadways, but those are the roadways where we see a lot of our traffic coming through town.
“Before Gov. Baker left office, he signed into law the Vulnerable User Roadway Act that enacted the four-foot buffer zone for bicycles. Of course, it’s always been the law that you have to yield to pedestrians, both inside and outside a crosswalk,” he added. “And it’s also been a long-standing law that if you approach a horse with a rider – on or off of it – you’re supposed to slow or bring your vehicle to a stop until instructed by the rider to proceed, particularly if the horse looks frightened. And you must pass at least four feet from the animal.”
Reading from Mass General Law, Chapter 90, Section 14, Buck pointed out that motorists must use the same amount of caution “when approaching a cow or other draft animal being led, ridden, or driven if the animal appears frightened.”
Buck said a separate grant from MassDOT was used to purchase two speed measurement trailers, which display the speed of oncoming motorists.
“We basically applied for and identified roadways that have a speed limit change or troubled speed areas,” he said. “So, we were able to get two of those solar-energized, battery backup speed trailers.”
Sgt. Randall Stange, who handles traffic enforcement for the Athol Police Department said, “Each year when we apply, there are different aspects for which we can request funding. You can request money for traffic safety enforcement; you can also put in for equipment.
Stange said he looks at the town’s crash history to see which areas have the most accidents and the department tries to schedule patrols in those areas.
“If we have complaints from the schools that they’re seeing speeding in a school zone, we’ll send people there,” he said. “If we have an eight-hour patrol, we’ll ask that they go to the different school zones in town. That’s what we have going on this year.”
Stange said the grant “covers the overtime. It’s an overtime patrol that the officers volunteer for.”