Description

Sometime in April the work-commute directional traffic on Route 16 at the intersection of Eliot (Route 16) and Pleasant Streets increased significantly. The problem is the Eastbound direction in the am and Westbound in the pm.

While it used to take a 2-3 minutes to get through that light while traveling on Route 16 Westbound in the afternoon, it now takes 15 minutes on average, with traffic for that light backed up almost all the way to the Wellesley College president's house. When you get to the actual intersection, you will notice that there is no significant traffic back up from the other 3 directions. Similar story for the am commute when heading Eastbound - no more than 4 or so cars waiting in the other directions, but Route 16 Eastbound backed up well past Memorial Elementary, and sometimes backed up as far as Eliot Hill Road.

I know this intersection is on the master plan list, but the traffic has gotten significantly worse since mid-April. Perhaps the traffic signal timing should be adjusted or some other temporary solution considered until permanent solutions are determined?