TODAY: Check out design plans for Cranberry Highway
Residents can check out the latest proposal for the redesign of Cranberry Highway during an informational meeting scheduled for Friday, June 14, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Town Hall cafeteria.
The Mass. Department of Transportation and engineering firm VHB have updated proposed plans for the highway after hearing from residents in July, 2012.
The project would widen and reconstruct the state highway from where Routes 6 and 28 intersect just west of Cranberry Plaza in East Wareham to the Bourne town line.
"We're hoping [the meeting time] opens it up for more people to view the information and talk to people involved in the project," said Town Administrator Derek Sullivan.
The meeting is not a hearing. Residents can simply get information and ask questions about the project.
At the last public hearing, attendees -- many of whom were business owners -- voiced a resounding "no" when asked if they wanted the project to go forward.
But in light of recent pedestrian accidents on the highway, many members of the community called for the roadway to be updated.
Previous designs included widening the highway from the current 56 feet to 70 feet, and constructing a 6-foot wide and 4-inch high median, adding 4-feet-wide shoulders accessible to bikes, and 5-and-a-half-foot-wide sidewalks on both sides of the road.
Construction would not be happening any time soon. The design is set to be completed and the project ready for construction sometime in 2016. Construction is slated to last until 2018.