Push continues to make Westport slower, safer to navigate

WESTPORT | The Safe Roads - Walkable Westport Task Force is continuing its efforts to make the town slower and safer to navigate. First, two new radar speed signs will be installed, one on South Main Street near the Old Arsenal Road and the other in Wadhams near the community playground. These signs will join four others previously installed throughout town, including one installed earlier this year near K&D Deli. Second, two new digitally printed 10x10 murals by Adirondack artist Gwen Vogel will be mounted at Westport Town Hall and the other in Wadhams. These will join another mural by Vogel, unveiled earlier this fall on the side of Hamilton Hall. All of these efforts were made as part of the town's "Slow with the Flow" and "Walkable Westport" public awareness campaigns, aimed at encouraging residents to walk more often and improving pedestrian safety by slowing traffic. "It all started with the triangle," said Jen Williams, president-elect of the Westport-Wadhams Community Alliance (WWCA) Board of Directors and co-chair of the Safe Roads - Walkable Westport Task Force, referring to the obvious traffic island at the intersection of Main Street and Champlain Avenue. "Back in 2023, I got my two kids, and people were whirling by, but there was really no safe place to cross because there's no crosswalk there." At the time, members of Westport-Wadhams Flowers Plus! — a volunteer-powered beautification initiative under the WWCA that formed to enrich the town's visual appeal — was doing some weeding and planting in the triangle. They were the ones who encouraged Williams to address the intersection's safety concerns, and she did just that by helping the town enhance signage, implement infrastructure improvements, and incorporate green landscaping and public art. So far, besides the efforts already listed, Safe Roads has organized its first National Walking Month, which was filled with community events and a town-wide "bingo" scavenger hunt, encouraging walkers of all ages to get out and embark on a fun adventure throughout Westport. The task force also created the Chair Trail. In this pedestrian-friendly attraction, individuals can tour eight larger-than-life Westport chairs, painted by local artists and community members, on foot. "Incorporating public art helps make Westport a more vibrant place to walk around and enjoy," Williams said. "We also want to be able to take these iconic statements to help remind people to consider when they're driving to slow down." All these changes were made possible thanks to a $25,000 AARP Community Challenge Grant awarded back in July, which is also covering the new murals and radar speed signs that the task force hopes will be in place by year's end. Currently, the task force is collaborating with the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) to implement a crosswalk at the triangle, and the WWCA is partnering with the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism (ROOST) to promote Westport as a destination for visitors. A new mural by Jasmine Horn, owner of Vagabond Blooms, which just opened earlier this fall, is being planned, and the task force hopes to eventually install more radar speed signs at other locations throughout town, including near the train underpass by the Depot Theatre. The ultimate goal is to eventually reduce the town's speed limit from 35 to 30 MPH. "If you look north, south, and west, you're going to see all these communities that have 30 MPH speed limits. Now, 35 MPH doesn't sound like a big difference, but it is," said Williams. "It's too fast. So, if we could get ours down, too, that would be great." For more information or updates, visit gowestportny.com.

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Push continues to make Westport slower, safer to navigate

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