The town has in fact built an island on Eastern Ave. approaching the intersection with High St. I'm not sure this necessarily "solves" the issue however. While it forces people making left turns from either Eastern Ave onto High street or vice-versa to enter the flow of traffic at a broader angle, it does not address the right turning traffic from High St onto Eastern Ave. I believe the only solution there is to bring the corner sidewalk (in front of Mocha Java) out a few feet, forcing traffic to take a wider turn and slow down. Currently, the turning radius allows vehicles to take that turn very quickly, and since there is no "safe place" to be seen by oncoming traffic, pedestrians have to venture out into the walk-way in order to be noticed and given the right of way. The danger lies here - because by the time oncoming vehicles take notice, they are already half way into their turn.

The traffic/pedestrian problem in Dedham Center is monumental and I don't envy those in charge of overseeing it. On the one hand, as more and more traffic builds up, there is an increased need to move the traffic through more quickly. On the other hand, businesses and the survival of the town center requires a thriving pedestrian culture. The question is how to marry both!

I believe the stop light on High and Washington actually hinders any real progress being made anywhere along High Street in the town center, because it bottle-necks the traffic and leaves little patience for drivers to get through. Ideally, you'd have an island that runs down the middle of High street with pedestrian walkway lights embedded in the ground to help keep drivers alert of pedestrians.