Speeding traffic makes bridge hazardous for cyclists and pedestirans

I agree Captain! Is there anyway to redesign the eastbound sidewalk as the official route to New Haven and the rest of the shoreline communities. The existing bike path is terrible and only requires minor clearing and paving and lights to make it a viable route form West Haven. The route back in to West Haven needs to be included in this West River project as well. The route is already slated for the East Coast Greenway. We have sent emails to Picard, DeStefano, and the DOT. We need to all get on the same page and really make this happen.

Story http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2011/09/27/news/metro/doc4e81e9c0a0af4740182100.txt makes this even more important. Call Mayor Picard's office to congratulate him on the project but demand that it be accessible.

http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2011/09/27/news/metro/doc4e81e9c0a0af4740182100.txt makes this even more important. Call Mayor Picard's office to congratulate him on the project but demand that it be accessible.

Is this basically the idea? (attached rendering)

Coming over the Kimberly Ave. Bridge from West Haven into New Haven has many issues. For one there is no bike lane and the traffic is at highway speeds before they even get on the ramps. The alternative is to go on the sidewalk, but that too has problems. Glass, a narrow path, and a 12inch drop off to the road. The sidewalk is my preferred rouet when coming into new haven on the xtracycle or madson toting two boys. The problem continues as the sidewalk ends and a 'trail' begins. There is a well worn trail that runs parallel to the on ramps. The trail is littered with glass, soft sand, and other non bike hazards. After about a hundred trips over the past two years along that path i have defined a few changes that would close the gap and offer a 'bridge' between two cities for walkers, runners, and cyclist.
1. make the bridge path wider and include a rail on the street side.
2. gravel or pave the path from the bridge to Ella T. Grasso Blvd.
3. Install guardrail on 95 North Onramp from Kimberly Ave to prevent cars from going to the shoreline to hang out and fish. (this is where most of the glass comes from)

Last year i requested a guard rail to be cut so that bike trailers could pass. That was taken care of, now it's time to put some more of our tax money to work by creating safe routes between cities and towns. This route is also marked on for the East Coast Greenway.
lets get this done.

This continues to be a major problem.

What's the status of the interchange reconstruction project?

I agree, Jessica. This area needs a "clusterfix."

The Board of Aldermen passed a Complete Streets Order by a vote of 30-0 in October 2008. As the only viable connection between two of the largest cities in our state, this bridge has been a community issue for long before that.

Why such a delay in making this bridge acceptable for cyclists and pedestrians?

Wouldn't it be nice if there were anything new to write about this path a whole year later? Or thanks to give to some city officials who had fixed the problem? Alas!

This is apparently a no man's zone between New Haven and West Haven, with both city governments ignoring the huge problems here for pedestrians and bicyclists and hoping the other government will take care of it. It would be so great to see some collaboration between New Haven and West Haven here to clean up the areas on either side of the Kimberly Avenue bridge! And to Keep it cleaned up too.

I see people walking and/or biking through this area every time I use the bridge. There is nothing to slow down drivers entering/exiting the highway and they Fly through here. Too dangerous. Needs so much fixing!