Eastern Connecticut the Odd Man Out as Powerhouse Gathering in Stamford Pitches High-Speed-Rail
Gregory Stroud
STAMFORD — Eastern Connecticut was the odd man out in a
powerhouse gathering of federal, state and local officials on Monday pitching
faster and more frequent rail service, and billions of dollars of new
investment, for the Northeast Corridor.
“It’s not partisan. It’s not even geographic, in the sense
that it’s defined by only big city mayors, or any sort of specific factor — if
you’re connected via a railroad, which almost every community in the United
States is actually, whether they know it or not, there’s been a resurgence and
focus about how rail can make a difference and be part of a community’s
mobility strategy,” explained Mitch Warren, who moderated the event and serves
as executive director for the quasi-public Northeast Corridor Commission.
Warren pitched a renewed focus on rail as a generational
change, in a nation that still has more miles of track than any other country
on earth, even if it is mostly used to move freight after passenger service was
largely abandoned in the 1960s.
“I don’t think it’s a mystery, right?” Warren told the
audience of about 75 people. “Aviation and flying has gotten worse. Everyone
agrees with me there, right? Driving is no fun, right? I mean, how many folks
have kids under the age of 30 who want to drive, who are really pumped about
driving? Right? It’s just a real change, and we see a huge interest in how rail
can be a part of communities.
On stage, Gov. Ned Lamont, his commissioner of
transportation, Garrett Eucalitto, and Stamford Mayor Caroline Simmons, were
joined by Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner, Federal Railroad Administration head Amit
Bose, and Metro-North President Catherine Rinaldi in notable show of power and
support for improved high-speed-service through Connecticut.
At the same time, absent was any mention, or discussion, of
how or why this conversation ended in frustration in 2017, with a
high-speed-rail masterplan the Northeast Corridor that left unresolved an
alternative to the corridor’s winding 19th-century-era route through coastal
southeastern Connecticut and southern Rhode Island.
That effort, dubbed NEC
Future, provides the menu of options for how roughly $16.4 billion of new
federal dollars — and any other federal funding over the next three or four
decades — can be spent on the corridor between Washington D.C. and
Boston, except for the ninety-odd miles of unresolved corridor
between New Haven to Providence.
A new study launched
in November by Amtrak intends to resolve that.
Called the New
Haven to Providence Capacity Planning Study, the study will recommend a new
off-corridor route that meets goals for time and capacity included in the 2017
NEC Future Record of Decision. Whether that means a return to the controversial
idea of a bypass through coastal southeastern Connecticut, or a direct route
between Hartford and Providence is not yet clear, though a recent interview with
Congressman Joe Courtney hinted that the direct inland route may already be off
the table.
After the last attempt to resolve the issue with a proposed
Kenyon to Old Saybrook Bypass sparked overwhelming public opposition across
southeastern Connecticut and southern Rhode Island, public support for the new
study may make or break any plans to significantly speed up train travel east
of New Haven in the coming decades.
Gardner told the assembled audience in Stamford that
high-speed rail, unlike mid-century interstates and highways, would respect the
fabric of local communities.
“We already have assets in the right place. We already go
mostly where folks are. So, when you think about building in a way that
respects communities that builds the fabric of community, rail’s got a way to
do it. The interstate era is over, we need to enunciate that probably more
clearly. But we haven’t been adding lane miles, we’re not going to add a bunch
of lane miles, we’re not going to do what [Interstate] 95 did, which was
bulldoze through the heart of communities. We have to figure out ways to create
capacity and fluidity within the fabrics of our communities. And that’s what
rail is so good at doing,” said Gardner.
But on Monday in Stamford the handful of attendees from
southeastern Connecticut arrived uninvited, including Old Lyme First
Selectwoman Martha Shoemaker, who could be seen taking notes longhand as
speaker after speaker pitched the benefits of high-speed rail and praised
President Joe Biden for delivering a multi-year multibillion dollar investment
in the Northeast Corridor.
In 2016, Old Lyme was the epicenter of opposition in
southeastern Connecticut to plans for high-speed-rail that included a rail
bypass cutting across the town’s National Register historic district at a
height of 40 feet.
Nine years later, John Noyes and Dini Mallory, co-chairs of
the Old Lyme Historic District Commission sent off a letter on Jan. 22 seeking
assurances that any outcome of the New Haven to Providence Capacity Planning
Study will respect the fabric of the historic town.
In an email to CT Examiner, Mallory and Noyes warned that
any attempt to revive plans for a “railway bypass through or near the Historic
District would pose an existential threat to the District.”
The New Haven to Providence Capacity Planning Study is
expected to conclude in 2024.
Years after its first buses rolled, CTfastrak delivering new development in West Hartford
With CTfastrak about
to enter its ninth year, The
Jayden mixed-use project in West Hartford is on track to be the latest
instance of transit-oriented development along its route.
Hexagon New Park LLC intends to build a five-story, 70-unit
apartment building on a New Park Avenue site near the busway’s Elmwood station.
The plan advanced last week when the town’s Design
Review Advisory Committee gave its endorsement following months of
discussions with the developer. If Town Planner Todd Dumais grants a permit,
construction on The Jayden could begin later this year with an opening planned
as early as the end of 2025, Tommy Li, a Hexagon partner, said in the fall.
The Jayden would become the latest of more than a half-dozen
major residential and mixed-use projects that developers attribute to
CTfastrak, the bus rapid transit system that links New Britain, Newington, West
Hartford and Hartford. High-frequency shuttles run between those communities
and link to traditional bus routes serving most other central Connecticut
communities.
When the busway was built for more than $570 million,
then-Gov. Dannel P. Malloy predicted it would drive new residential and
commercial development along the corridor, a 9.4-mile former freight rail line
that was dominated by long-vacant factories and machine shops.
Since then, investors have built or started more than a
half-dozen apartment complexes along the route, mostly clustered in downtown
New Britain but also in West Hartford and Newington. In all, that represents
more than 600 new apartments in the region, with many marketed to retired
seniors and young professionals who want semi-urban living with either less
driving or even none.
The Jayden would be a key victory for transit-oriented
development advocates who defended the busway against heavy political
opposition, with some conservatives in the General Assembly arguing that it was
an expensive boondoggle.
In 2019, state transportation planners issued an analysis
concluding the New Park Avenue corridor was ripe for an overhaul. That stretch
of the busway parallels the main street from West Hartford’s Elmwood section to
the Parkville section of Hartford.
“This industrial band is generally sandwiched between
low-density residential and large-footprint commercial strip development,” they
wrote. “However, recent and forthcoming investments have positioned the
corridor for transformation. The New Park Avenue corridor has the potential to
become a walkable, mixed-use and transit supportive environment.”
Two communities that quickly and most heavily made use of
the busway’s ridership potential were New Britain and West Hartford. Both
undertook planning studies and then amended their zoning rules to encourage
higher-density housing and other development within walking distance of
CTfastrak stations.
“The busway undoubtedly was the catalyst that allowed me the
opportunity to redevelop so many of the sites around the station,” New Britain
Mayor Erin Stewart said Tuesday. “Access to public transit is important for a
new generation of Connecticut residents and young people.”
The result has been a series of new housing starts in New
Britain’s downtown; four of the largest projects alone — The Brit, The
Highrailer, The Strand and the first phase of Columbus Commons — are creating
more than 400 apartments near the CTfastrak station on Columbus Avenue.
The Jayden is being developed by a private builder, though,
and will lease 80% of its one- and two-bedroom units at market rates. Mayor
Shari Cantor credited the town’s new rules in 2022 that make transit-oriented
development smoother and faster for the builder.
“This is the first development since we adopted our TOD
ordinance which allows a development like the Jayden with 80% market rate units
and 20% affordable to be approved with administrative approval,” Cantor said.
“This project is exactly what we had envisioned when we adopted the ordinance.”
Cantor said town leaders expect the transit-oriented
development zone will continue to attract new construction in the future, and
are hoping for a local link to the CTrail Hartford Line to help. The commuter
rail trucks run parallel to the busway in that section of West Hartford.
“We believe a Hartford rail line station in this corridor is
consistent with the state’ goals and will only enhance the state’s investment
in CTfastrak,” Cantor said.
Route 172 bridge in Southbury gets green light from inspectors
STEVE BIGHAM
SOUTHBURY – A bridge spanning the Pomperaug River along
Route 172 in South Britain received a clean bill of health following an
inspection Tuesday morning, one of thousands of bridge inspections done by the
state every two years.
Workers used a device called a snooper, a cranelike
apparatus that allows for access to the bridge’s underside. There, inspectors
applied various techniques, including a simple tap of a hammer, to determine
the bridge’s structural integrity, much of it based on sound.
A state Department of Transportation engineer on scene said
the inspection focuses on a bridge’s steel super structure and underside
concrete decking.
The state inspects the in-water structure of all state-road
bridges ever four years, a task that requires trained dive teams.
The snooper Tuesday was provided by state contractor McClain
& Co. of Middletown, which specializes in the support of engineering
companies and government agencies for the inspection and maintenance of
bridges.
McClain’s Arvid Ericson was at the controls of the device,
maneuvering the snooper’s 62-foot arm and bucket over and alongside the bridge
before steering it deep into the bridge’s underbelly.
“You see a lot of strange things when you go under a
bridge,” Ericson said. “A lot of dead bodies have been found during the course
of a bridge inspection.”
Southbury’s inspection involved a bridge originally built in
1939 and rebuilt in 1991.
$16.5M Danbury High School science lab renovations advances on state's priority list
DANBURY — Local leaders’ plan
to upgrade Danbury High School’s science labs, now more than two years in
the making, is a few more steps away from becoming a reality.
The $16.5 million plan is among the projects that made the School Construction Project Priority List put forth by the state Department of Administrative Services, according to an announcement issued by State Sen. Julie Kushner, D-Danbury. DAS’ School Construction Project Priority List Review Committee approved the project’s consideration last week.
"Making it on to the 2024 priority list is the first step in a multi-step
process to getting these upgrades over the finish line," Kushner said in
prepared remarks. "I am committed to working with my colleagues on the
Education and Finance Committees to ensuring that the students at Danbury High
School will benefit from these science lab upgrades, even as we transition into
the future to the Danbury Career Academy and the tens of millions of dollars in
state support for that project as well. We're certainly moving in a good
direction."
Kushner’s office stated the project will update and
reconfigure 28,400 square feet of science labs, located on the fourth and fifth
floors of Danbury High School’s C Building. The project will also affect other
interior spaces, including the labs’ prep rooms, work rooms and storage areas.
The labs themselves will receive new doors and equipment, and classroom doors
will be modified for building code compliance.
Before the project priority list is adopted by state
lawmakers, it will be reviewed by the legislature’s Education and Finance
Committees.
The state is expected to cover nearly $10.43 million, or
63.21 percent of the project’s total $16.5 million cost. A timeline for when
the project would be completed wasn’t immediately available.
Last fall, then-mayoral
candidate Roberto Alves often referenced the need to update Danbury
High School’s science labs while on the campaign trail.
Alves, now the city’s mayor, said he is “grateful to the
School Construction Project Priority List Review Committee for choosing this
important project at Danbury High School so we can fix and upgrade science labs
that haven’t been operational for a long time, and I thank Senator Kushner and
Danbury’s entire legislative delegation for their continued hard work,
collaboration, and dedication to delivering for Danbury schools.”
Ten rural CT communities to receive portion of over $9M for transportation, safety upgrades
The grants — released through the Transportation Rural
Improvement Program, or TRIP — are designed to direct funding to rural towns
that are often ineligible for many federal transportation programs, according
to the office of Gov. Ned Lamont.
Among the recipients is Coventry, which will get $498,000
for pedestrian safety improvements.
Hebron is slated to receive about $985,000 for improvements
to Jones Street, and Stafford will get about $884,000 for the construction of
the Levinthal Run multi-use path.
The largest grant is going to Salisbury, which will receive
about $1.15 million for sidewalk construction on Main Street.
Mathewson Mill Road rehabilitation in Preston will be helped
by about a $1 million grant, with roughly the same amount allocated to Sharon
for sidewalks on routes 41 and 361.
Cornwall will receive $868,000 for sidewalks on the West
Cornwall Bridge, Haddam Center is getting nearly $783,000 for sidewalks there,
and the Air Line Trail in Hampton will get about $822,000 for resurfacing.
Finally, Voluntown Village will receive roughly $950,500 for
sidewalk extensions.
"Right now, we are in an era in which we are making
some of the largest investments in transportation infrastructure improvements
in our lifetime, and we want to make sure Connecticut's rural communities are
also supported," Lamont said. "Small towns across Connecticut support
families and play a vital role in growing the agriculture, tourism, and
manufacturing sectors. We're providing state grants to help ensure these
smaller communities remain safe and connected for future generations."
The TRIP program is a new competitive grant program funded
through state bonding. Last year, towns with half of their population living in
rural areas were eligible to apply for the funding.
While the Department of Transportation will cover the
entirety of construction costs, municipalities are required to cover the
cost of designs.
"I am proud of the work our team at CTDOT has made in
coordination with local leaders to review submissions and select projects that
will improve safety and mobility," DOT Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto
said. "These investments will go a long way toward improving safety and
building a stronger transportation network throughout rural Connecticut."
After death of worker, CT utility should step up certain safety precautions, state report finds
State utilities regulators urged Connecticut’s second
largest electricity provider to use the same safety precautions for work at
office buildings as a public street or highway after a
land surveyor was struck and killed in Fairfield last year.
The Public
Utilities Regulatory Authority issued its recommendation in a recent
decision, following an investigation into the death of 59-year-old Stephen
Brynn, a Colchester contractor hired by United
Illuminating Co.
The ruling is likely to draw attention to safety procedures
for work done on entrances and exits on commercial properties.
According to the decision, Brynn, who worked for BL Cos., was not visible on a driveway
leading to parking lot when he was struck May 17 at an office building on the
Post Road.
In the report, PURA acknowledged the safety procedures for public roads do not apply to parking lots. But they do apply to “site roadways open to public travel” and may apply to the driveway of a commercial building.
PURA urged UI to apply to same procedures for “the placement
and operation of traffic control devices while in similar high-traffic
driveways or any similar area where vehicles pass through.”
“The fatal accident examined in this investigation, like
most accidents, was avoidable,” the PURA document says. “The purpose of this
investigation was to understand the causes and circumstances of the
accident in order to identify safety improvements that will reduce the risk of
similar accidents. The investigation did not evaluate liability or fault
associated with the accident.”
During the investigation, UI told PURA that no matter the
location, risks to workers must be fully assessed and safety measures put in
place. Some measures could include signage, a barricade protecting the worker
or assigning a second person as a “spotter.”
PURA noted that Brynn was laying down above a storm drain
with an orange traffic cone placed behind him when he was struck. The report
explained: “Part of the work involved measuring the depths of certain pipes
located under the manholes and storm drains to these two properties and
to also document in the direction the pipes travel relative to the UI
wires on the Metro North property.”
A report from police in Fairfield concluded that Brynn
“should not have conducted his surveying duties at the location without proper
safety measures in place, and that the operator of the vehicle that struck him
could not have seen Mr. Brynn laying on the ground in front of her vehicle as
she moved forward.”
In a statement, UI spokesman Sarah Wall Fliotsos
said: “Safety for all our workers is our number-one priority at UI, and we
appreciate PURA’s attention to worker safety reflected in their decision last
week.”
The report noted that “BL Companies was hired to conduct
field surveys for the Fairfield Congress Project, which involved the rebuild
and relocation of UI’s 115-kV transmission line from atop the CT Department of
Transportation/MetroNorth catenary structures onto single and double
circuit monopoles” from Bridgeport to Fairfield.
OSHA, CCO, NCCCO Foundation Partner to Reduce Risks for Workers
LUCY PERRY
The construction crane industry is shoring up safety efforts
to prevent accidents like those that have brought negative visibility to the
market sector in the past few years.
CCO and the NCCCO Foundation have formed an alliance with
OSHA to keep the industry informed about OSHA's safety initiatives. That bodes
well for contractors and crew members working around the machines every day.
In November, the three organizations signed a formal
agreement to collaborate in providing information, guidance and resources. The
goal is to promote workplace safety and health and awareness of workers' rights
and employers' responsibilities under OSHA.
"Workers … can face serious and potentially
life-threatening hazards if they are not properly trained or protected,"
said Doug Parker, OSHA assistant secretary. "Our alliance with these
industry leaders focuses on training workers and working with employers to make
safety and health a core value."
Parker said this will be accomplished through the
implementation of best industry practices to ensure workers' safety.
"We look forward to making our industry safer,"
Thom Sicklesteel, CCO chief executive, said at the signing in Washington, D.C.
Haste Makes Waste, Risk
In Aubrey, Texas, last year, OSHA found the death of a crew
member could have been prevented if required mobile crane safety procedures had
been followed.
According to DOL, OSHA investigators learned the 23-year-old
and other workers were constructing a metal building when the crane collapsed.
The agency determined the company exposed its employees to struck-by hazards by
overloading the crane beyond its weight limitations.
OSHA cited the company for not using temporary alternative
measures when the load and radius cell did not work. The agency also cited the
employer for the operation of a mobile crane in excess of rated capacity and
operation in a matter that exceeded rated capacity.
The company also was cited for failure to create and employ
an accident prevention program; perform regular work site inspections; and meet
federal standards for crane and wire rope inspections.
OSHA proposed a fine of nearly $263,000, saying the employer
disregarded the safety of its crew, "willfully ignoring required safety
standards."
"And one worker suffered the deadly consequences of the
company's failures," said Timothy Minor, OSHA area director.
In Arizona, a crane crew member suffered electrocution
during the installation of an air conditioner. A state workplace safety
inspection determined the employer violated multiple safety regulations in the
accident.
Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health (ADOSH)
said following safety and electrical precautions could have prevented the
death. The inspection found the crane's cable was too close to electrical lines
without shutting off power, according to television station abc15 in Tucson.
"There was no documentation the 26-ton crane had been
inspected annually as required," said Anne Ryman, reporter. "In
addition, the sling used to lift the 681-pound air conditioning unit was frayed
and should not have been used," the inspection said.
The crane company was fined more than $32,000, and one citation was classified as "willful serious."
This designation is the most serious worker-safety
violation, levied only where the inspector says employers knowingly failed to
follow safety regulations.
Last summer, the crane and operator were hired to lift and
set the air-conditioning unit into place. The crane operator lowered the unit
with the cable coming within 2 ft. of electrical lines, according to the ADOSH
report. The operator ordered the unit to be pushed where it was supposed to go
on the roof. The cable hit the power lines, electrocuting the 23-year-old
worker.
"The crane operator told us right up front that he knew
he wasn't supposed to be that close to the line," said Mark Norton, ADOSH
director.
The state then fined the crane company an additional $25,000
for the willful citation resulting in a worker death. The money goes to the
worker's family.
Crane operators in Atlanta say the fast pace of construction
is raising risk levels when safety concerns on the job are ignored.
Ashli Lincoln with wsbtv.com in Atlanta reported that operators attribute
the situation to pressure to build quickly and move on.
"When we get a job, we hit the ball running,"
according to one crane operator who said the fast pace comes with a list of
ignored safety concerns.
"I recently had to walk off a job because it was so
unsafe," one operator said.
Operators said they've been asked to operate in high wind
conditions, carry excessively heavy loads, work 80-hour weeks, and rely on
inexperienced riggers.
One crane operator recalled a project where none of the
riggers spoke clear English, adding that that itself is a major safety concern.
Policy of Doing It Right
Fortunately, the incident-free construction jobs outweigh
the sites that log accidents and incidents. The contractors who believe in best
practices do it right.
Alamo Crane Service Inc. (ACS), selected to receive a
subcontractors association safety award, is one of those contractors.
American Subcontractors Association (ASA) awarded Alamo a
2022 National Safety Award last spring. The annual program recognizes member
companies instrumental in making safety and safety education a priority in
their companies.
These companies go "above and beyond to ensure their
employees and everyone on the job site go home to their families after every
workday," said ASA.
Only nine companies from across the country were selected to
receive the national safety award. Of those, Alamo Crane Service was the only
crane company to receive this award.
"This is a big deal," said Marvin Ohlenbusch,
Alamo Crane COO. "To be recognized nationally for this award says a
lot."
He said a safety culture focused on risk management, engaged
by every team member, ensures the company is doing its best to keep employees
and customers safe.
In 2017, the company was awarded Texas Mutual's Platinum
Safety Award. The company was recognized for its outstanding safety record.
OSHA has long tried to make construction work sites safer,
through policies that include certification, education and inspection.
After a crane-related death on the island of Guam in late
2022, OSHA released a statement urging employers to enhance safety measures.
Falls, tip-overs, struck-bys, electrocutions, being caught
between a crane and other structures and unqualified operators as the most
common hazards.
After the Guam job site death, OSHA recommended the
following safety measures where crane operations take place:
Use your experience, knowledge and training to assess risks
and follow crane procedures.
Do not operate a crane or hoist that is damaged or has any
actual or suspected mechanical or electrical malfunction.
Do not attempt to lengthen wire rope or repair damaged wire
rope.
Do not use the wire rope, any part of the crane, hoist, or
the load block and hook as a ground for welding.
Do not allow a welding electrode to touch the wire rope.
Do not remove or obscure any warning labels on the crane or
hoist.
Do not walk under a suspended load or allow anyone to walk
under a suspended load.
Do not perform or allow anyone to perform any work on a
suspended load that requires a worker to be positioned under the suspended load
Always use personal protective equipment, such as gloves,
hard hats, hearing, foot and eye protection.
"Injuries and fatalities related to crane operations
are preventable with training and proper attention to safety controls,"
said Roger Forstner, OSHA area director. "Employers need to take all
necessary steps to reduce incidents involving crane operations and improve the
workplace safety where cranes are in use."
Over the years, the agency and the construction industry
have seen the benefits of partnering to reduce risk on construction job sites.
In announcing the alliance with CCO and NCCO, Scott Ketcham,
OSHA director, thanked the organizations for working to reach this significant
milestone.
He also appreciated their efforts build upon the
agency-industry relationship that was built over the past two decades.
The principal goal of the alliance is to provide employers
and workers tools and guidance to help eliminate and/or prevent workplace
health and safety hazards.
According to OSHA, under this agreement, the three will team
up on numerous initiatives to improve safety in the load handling industry,
including:
Sharing industry alerts,
Encouraging industry participation in and support of OSHA
events and programs,
Convening roundtable discussions and stakeholder meetings on
crane industry safety,
Providing opportunities for OSHA to speak and participate in
industry meetings and events,
Raising awareness of resources and tools that will assist
operators in complying with OSHA regulations,
Sharing information on updates to OSHA load handling
regulations and enforcement such as certification and evaluation requirements,
Developing surveys for candidate base segments and sharing
survey results, and
Encouraging key CCO test sites to build relationships with
OSHA's regional and area offices to promote safety and awareness.
The trio also will coordinate opportunities for training of
OSHA staff focused on operator qualification and certification standards. The
training also will cover jobsite responsibilities and equipment demonstrations
or innovations.
The member organizations will encourage worker participation
in workplace safety and health by engaging with industry experts. The goal is
to ensure resources and training materials/programs developed and offered are
available to meet the needs of stakeholders.