Slow Streets - Neighborhood Traffic Calming

Slow Street Sign on Hampton Street

In 2018, Degree® Deodorant and Blue Zones® announced the five cities that were awarded $100,000 each to implement innovative and transformative community projects to help people get moving naturally for generations to come. The Hartford project would host the state’s first bike boulevard on Hampton Street, which became a specially-marked, low-traffic, low-speed street designated for riders of all ages and abilities. 

Evaluation and outreach on the Slow Streets program continued in 2022. Based on traffic data and resident surveys, the Hampton Street pilot was found to be an effective traffic calming installation, and the City is working to transition the pilot to a permanent design. In 2023, Frog Hollow's Babcock and Affleck Streets also received a pilot-to-permanent treatment, with a new permanent diagonal diverter installed at the intersection of Russ and Babcock Streets. 

Since that time, the City has evolved the Slow Streets program to support safer streets across various neighborhoods. The team's approach to traffic calming currently focuses on: 1) individual, high priority corridors; and 2) broader neighborhood-level street planning. The Safe Streets team will continue to add streets and neighborhood programming. Current projects are noted in the following tabs.  

Hillside Avenue Traffic Calming Pilot

Hillside Avenue has seen over 100 crashes along the corridor during the past three years. To improve the safety on this critical corridor and near Moylan Elementary and McDonough Middle Schools, the Safe Streets team has been looking to introduce a traffic calming pilot project to Hillside Avenue. 

Traffic calming treatments vary, from reduced lane widths to street reconfiguration with alternating parking, crosswalk striping, mini islands, new signage, bumpouts, school zone markings, one-way standardization, and more. Please see find informational materials below:

If you have any questions on transportation planning, please contact safestreets@hartford.gov.

Tower Avenue Traffic Calming Pilot

Tower Avenue is one of the most challenging streets in Hartford for fatal and severe crashes. The City of Hartford has been working to make the street safer, and the team is looking to install an interim improvement using a series of adaptable traffic islands and some bumpouts where applicable. The islands will be placed in the center turn lane to help prevent improper passing and speeding behaviors in that space. 

Blue Hills Neighborhood Traffic Calming Pilot

In the past year, the City of Hartford has been working to design slower, safer streets in Blue Hills. After several community conversations and workshops, the team is looking to install a temporary safety improvement pilot project across multiple streets in the neighborhood. 

More broadly, the project will be implemented in the 2024-2025 fiscal year. One intersection, Lyme & Palm Street, is undergoing additional review and consideration given the unique space and range of feedback. 

Street concepts and other information is below: 

Garden, Greenfield, and More - Traffic Calming Pilot

As major connector streets spanning multiple neighborhoods (Clay Arsenal, Upper Albany, Northeast, and Asylum Hill), Garden and Greenfield Streets were identified as priority areas for action. Vine, Mahl, FD Oates, and Pavilion Streets are included with Garden and Greenfield given their proximity as parallel or connector streets to other major areas (e.g. Main Street and Albany Ave). 

The Safe Streets team kicked off the early design process in 2023, and also implemented an interim pilot treatment at a primary intersection (Garden & Greenfield St) in November of 2023. The rest of the corridor design is anticipated to be moving forward in 2024, with potential for another interim pilot treatment at the intersection of Garden & Ashley Streets.

West End Neighborhood Traffic Calming Pilot

The City of Hartford is exploring options for Slow Streets on Beacon / N Beacon, Oxford, Whitney / S Whitney, Fern, and Sherman Streets in the West End neighborhood. N / Beacon Streets were originally part of the first batch of streets for the Slow Streets program. The Slow Streets program evolved over time, and the targeted areas grew to include the primary and parallel connector streets as noted above. 

In August 2023, the Safe Streets team hosted a public design workshop at the Hartford International University for Religion and Peace. Workshop presentation materials are available at: https://www.hartfordct.gov/files/assets/public/development-services/planning-zoning/pz-documents/cs-projects/slow-streets/westendkickoffmeeting20230808.pdf.

 

Contact details

Bicycle & Pedestrian Coordinator
860-757-9222
safestreets@hartford.gov
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