Not the story I was hoping for, but instead we got the other one. You know the one where he blames us, the City of Worcester, for not providing the"improved highway access." I maintain that if the airport had been running efficiently that people would find ORH and would not need highway access. Lets for a moment accept this excuse.
The main problem was the idea of having an access road off Route 290 utilizing the Hope Ave, later Cambridge Street was considered, were plain stupid ideas and alienated pretty much everyone in Worcester!!!!!! Trying to imagine the cost and time to build these roads is overwhelming. Has anyone been on Goddard lately? I swear it has been 2 maybe 3 years they have been working on these roads.
The most logical option has been, is and will be a new exit off the Mass Pike on to Route 56. The highway here would be quite easy to widen, with the only exception being when you cross Route 9. Leicester, and other surrounding towns, would welcome this idea since it will increase all the property values in their towns overnight. Worcester would not only welcome the idea for better access to ORH, but the lines of cars that cross Worcester (East-West) from points West every morning would utilize this "north south connector" to the new Mass exit.
Click here to access a map:
Best of all you can collect monies to pay for it!!! Can you even imagine how much the land would be worth around ORH if you could access the MassPike from this connector??
Maybe the Master Plan will address this issue, but where is it? How many years has it been that they have been working on the 20 year Master Plan? Honestly it has been over 3 years now!! Maybe IMG ("Infrastructure" Management Group) will look into it?? Maybe the New England Regional Air Study Plan will look into this? No to both. We need to put together 750,000 to 1,000,000 to do another study??? Let me get this straight, none of these consultants (Leigh Fisher, Jacobs, Berger, IMG) have been studying the highway access???
Maybe we should hire a consultant to tell us what are consultants should be working on.
Same Time Next Year
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It’s been nearly a year since I wrote about the problems that come from
having 11 bosses who are not on the same page about anything, as well as
suggestion...
4 months ago
10 comments:
My 2 cents.........this rte 56 Mass pike connection would be too far from ORH and more imporatrnaly too far from ORH's most populous catchment area which is to the east....
the 290 Cambridge st connector is the best idea..........but we missed the boat with the re constrc of 146 interchange.........
next best is the HOpe Ave alternative.,,,,,,which will also give us a badly needed intracity, partial beltway/roadway........ eminent domain is a nec. evil for the growth of any real mertopolitan area.......too bad we got (or had) a spineless council who succumbed to the wishes of 20 or 30 homeowners.........rather than the greater good.
BTW....what ever happened to that citizens consultant group calle dthe Mill Street Corridor Posse? Guess they stopped at Mill st. elks for a brew and after that all was forgotten?
Jahn:
People from the East would be able to take the MassPike and take a newly created exit off the MassPike on to Route 56 and then direct to the airport. Distance from a newly created exist off MassPike to ORH would be less then the distance from the Hope exit to ORH.
Jahn, Cambridge Street what have you been smokin today. You would literally have to buy every property that abuts the street and then you get to Webster Square?
The beauty of an exit off the MassPike onto Route 56 is that Route 56 is not Cambridge Street or Hope ave.
Thanks
Bill
Bill, your exit is out in the boon docks.....of course the time of the trip is most imp. and not nec the distance....but
what kind of market is there for orh in Charlton, lieeester, oxford, strubridge, etc. compared to westboro, or shrews. or northboro, s'boro etc.
as far as cambridge st........i think like our city councillors and our school dept.......the state will be paying for most or all of......so money is no object.........by the same token.......your route may involve less expensive land takings..............but the roadway to be built would be many miles longer.......not sure which would be cheaper....Camb or Rte 56 upgrade for how many miles?
Webster Sq.......a tunnel........
also with Cambr/ webster sq the city gets the addeed benefit of at least a partial east west corridor............ever try to negotiate city street during commuter hours??..........
The city needs a beltway around its outer extremities......but will prob never happen in totality......costs......ROAR mentality......& a council that cannot make decision that benefits the city as whole when a few 100 people show up and ++++ & moan.........
i mean just at thsi health ins debacle of late for a retirees.........you'd think the sky was falling..........i read we almost had tears flowing in 1 case.....
Objectivity will always rule in the long run.......emotionality results in a short term deferral of the problem
Jahn:
You do not need an access road for ORH to attract people from Charlton and Leicester?? They can find ORH with an access road. On the other hand they would love to get on the Pike off 56 to get to work.
The question is would people in Metrowest rather get to ORH via a Hope Ave/Cambridge Street exit off Route 290, or would they rather have a Pike exit.
Why is traffic so backed up East-West throughout the City? People who work West of Worcester have to travel accross it to get to Route 290, 146 and the Pike. If they could avoid Worcester and get on a connector (Route 56) to the Pike, they would.
What I am trying to say is this. 1) A Mass Pike connection on Route 56 would replace the need for an East-West Connector through the City of Worcester. 2) Any one in the Metro-west, Springfield, etc would find the convenience of an exit off the Pike to ORH to be quite convenient. 3) Practicality, Jahn a tunnel at Webster Square??? Come on.
Having worked in Boston for the last 11 years, I can honestly say anything west of Route 128 in their eyes, might as well be in Seattle, Washington. When I say I commute from Worcester they are star struck ..."OMG, that's SOOOOOOO far away..." is usually the response I get. As such, they are ALL familiar with the Mass Pike/Interstate 90 .... only a fraction are familiar and/or care about I-290. If you are trying to target your market to the east, a connector road from the Mass Pike is the way to go...
Harry Tembenis
Worcester, MA
Jahn:
From a marketing standpoint, to say we have an exit right off the MassPike would be much more effective.
Bill
Bill, are Leicester and charlton really places where lots of people go to work?
My point was there isn't that great of a market for ORH in Leister, charlton etc as there is in metro west so putting an access road in that general vicinty doesnt seem to be the right place.
When I travel to & from Metrowest , I use 290 & 495 & rte 9 (sometimes rte 9 only). Unless one lives in the eastern or southern extremities of Worc, the Masspike isnt really much of an option from the Metrowest area and eastern Mass in getting to Worc.
290 trafiic is a problem now at cummter rush hours, but that will change when 146 interchange is complete. All cities have commuter hour tie ups on their interstates during rush hour anyway.
We still dont have a Worc Masspike exit...thats actually in worc.
I just looked at a map...........the junctiion of 56 and the Pike is way too far south & west of Worc...aproxx. 6-7 west/south west miles, then one has to travel north and east at least another 8 or 9 miles to ORH.......the Worc airport access exit s/b in Worc where it will be only 2-3 miles to ORH
A Rte 56 connector will not do anything to facilitate Worc's intracity traffic flows like goin gfrom the west side to westboro e.g.
Springfield flyers will not be going to ORH w/o re to where an access road is palced......they use Bradley or Chicoppee. An exit off 290 is more convenient for Metrowest. Again, look at the mileage one has to cover to Rte 56 and the PIKE and then practically reverse directions another 9 miles to orh
Yes a tunnel under Webster q/Park Ave to Mill st or a bridge/overpass system. I think we all agree something s got to be done in that bottel neck and the answer is not re-lining the street and synchronizing the signals.
My point is that Worc as whole needs major traffic relief.............and an ORH conector off 290 would be great strides toward that end..........2 birds w/ one stone.......yes it will cost dearly coming over Cambridge St....but vs miles and miles of new highway through the hinterland as well as up grades to rte 56..........I think Camb St. is better........290 had to be punched through the heart of the city........progress does hurt some
Harry, Boston isnt ORH's target market...........Metrowest is........and those people know 290. If I live in Ashland, Hopkinton, S'boro, Marlboro, N'boro, Westboro, Hudson......i suggest that I am not going to hop on 495 to the Pike (except maybe the far east part of S'boro) and then travel miles south & west beyond my intended destination.........it's too far out of the way .......i am going to hop on 290.
Jahn:
If I lived in Rutland, Paxton, any of these towns West of Worcester, how do you think they access the highway system? They cross Worcester, just check out Tatnuck and Webster Square any morning to see how far back the traffic goes.
If these people could get on Route 56 then access the Pike they would. From there they could work in Springfield, Hartford, Providence, etc..
If I lived in Metrowest and was told that I had a choice to take an exit off the MassPike to ORH or that I would have to get on Route 290, I would prefer the Pike exit.
We can go back and forth like this all day, but you saw what happened when an access road off 290 was proposed. It was DEAD!!!!!
We have no choice but to look at the MassPike on to Route 56.
If Cambridge St or Hope Ave are too difficult, how about doing BOTH a Rte 56/Pike interchange AND a highway from 290 /190 junction to 122 at the sign near Airport Drive? That would give sane hwy access for people north and west of Worcester to get to work, hwy access to the airport, and create a box-shaped beltway all around Worcester. However, besides the problem mentioned going through Leicester center, how would Rte 56 connect to the airport - by widening Marshall St through reservoir watershed?
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