AMHERST — An in-depth study of traffic on the University of Massachusetts campus is underway after recent crashes that killed one pedestrian and seriously injured another.
Vanasse Hangen Brustlin Inc., with a local office in Springfield, was recently hired by UMass to develop short-, mid- and long-term recommendations related to how vehicles, bicyclists and pedestrians navigate the campus, said UMass spokeswoman Mary Dettloff.
Areas that VHB will study include reducing vehicle speeds; providing consistent pavement marking, signs, lights and signals; improving pedestrian crossing points; enhancing bicycle accommodations; and improving visibility.
Dettloff said the most immediate advice coming from VHB would center on pedestrian improvements that could be implemented during the summer of 2022 on Massachusetts and Commonwealth avenues, both of which are four-lane roads, and adding accessible pedestrian signal upgrades at the main intersections along those streets.
The recommendations that will take more time to implement could be provided over the summer.
The most recent crash occurred on the night of March 21 on Massachusetts Avenue when a 20-year-old UMass student was struck by a vehicle that didn’t stop. The injured man was brought to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, and has since been released from the hospital, according to the Northwestern district attorney’s office.
Jacob A. Delisle, 20, of Florence, who pleaded not guilty in Eastern Hampshire District Court in Belchertown, will be back for a pretrial hearing May 20 on charges of leaving the scene of a personal injury accident, negligent operation of a motor vehicle to endanger, failure to stop for a pedestrian in a crosswalk, misleading a witness and trespassing.
In February, Elena Lucore, a 19-year-old freshman, was killed at the edge of the same road. The driver in that incident, also a student, remained at the scene. That accident remains under investigation.
Since Lucore’s death, UMass has reduced speeds on the road, installed beacons for pedestrians to activate and has had monitors watching the road.
Dettloff said the UMass Transportation Center in the College of Engineering will also be assisting the private company in studying potential changes.
