Amid Traffic Violence Crisis, Key Worcester Road Safety Projects Drag On

WORCESTER, MA — Just over a month after Candice Asare-Yeboah, 5, died in May 2022 after a driver hit her in a crosswalk along Stafford Street, dozens of people turned out to take a walk along the road for a safety audit.

The event, organized by District 5 Councilor Etel Haxhiaj, included public works employees, state lawmakers David LeBoeuf and Anne Gobi, and At-Large Councilor Donna Colorio, chair of the council's traffic and parking committee. The auditors found cars blocking sidewalks, crosswalks too wide to safely cross, and witnessed plenty of speeding drivers.

That safety walk eventually led to Worcester's new Department of Transportation and Mobility (DTM) creating plans for Stafford Street safety upgrades. The plans were first revealed in May 2023 along with upgrades for Burncoat Street and Grove Street along Indian Lake. The upgrades were among the first for DTM, which officially formed only weeks after Candice's death with the goal of bringing Worcester roads in line with new safety standards.

But as of this week, Stafford Street remains as it did in 2022. On Monday morning, drivers could be seen speeding down wide lanes through the same crosswalk where Christopher Remillard hit Candice and her mother with his SUV more than two years ago.

The three projects are happening at a time when pedestrian safety has reached a tipping point. City Manager Eric Batista and Mayor Joseph Petty declared a road safety and traffic violence crisis earlier this month after a series of pedestrian collisions. One killed a 13-year-old girl, one left a 13-year-old seriously injured, another left a toddler gravely injured. At least three other collisions left adult pedestrians and one scooter rider critically injured.

Last week, Batista's office said the projects should be complete this fall. That's an ambitious timeline compared to similar projects. The controversial renovation of Mill Street last summer began in July, but didn't wrap up until early December. Some of the current road safety projects have already been underway for months, but appear idle as the summer construction season heads into autumn.

The Stafford Street overhaul, for example, began in late 2023. As of this week, some sidewalks had been replaced with new asphalt. But other sections of sidewalk had been torn up, leaving weed-choked gaps impassable for pedestrians with mobility issues. There were no construction vehicles at work on the street on Monday.

According to a city spokesperson, work on new sidewalks is nearing completion along Burncoat, Grove and Stafford streets. Once new curbs and sidewalks have been installed, the streets will be milled and resurfaced. Following that, crews will install flashing beacons, new signs, and re-stripe roads to include bike lanes, crosswalks, new travel lanes and new parking spaces.

DTM is pursuing the safety projects as part of the city's annual street repaving program. DTM plans the upgrades, but the separate Department of Public Works puts the projects out to bid, which can lead to delays outside the control of DTM officials. Batista's office said the three projects have already been bid, meaning one less barrier to complete the work.

The Stafford Street project is perhaps the most important of the three projects. The road features lanes 22 feet wide, wider than lanes along the Mass Pike. Crosswalks are far and few between, and sidewalks are in poor condition in the middle of a busy residential and commercial area. A recent DTM traffic study found that drivers are often traveling at or above the posted 35 mph limit. Where Remillard hit Asare-Yeboah, the top 15 percent of drivers average 38 mph. At that speed, a pedestrian has about a one in 10 chance of surviving a collision.

Speed is another factor Worcester is trying to tame, but has also been delayed. In December, DTM proposed lowering the citywide speed limit to 25 mph. That proposal has been stuck in Colorio's committee ever since. Colorio has not scheduled a meeting to vote on the proposal this month, which means the earliest it could reach the full city council is late September. Even with council approval, the city would still have to erect new signs advertising new speed limits, delaying implementation further. Cities including Boston, Springfield, Providence have all lowered speed limits to 25.

The city has als primed local residents for the Stafford changes. DTM and Haxhiaj held a community meeting in April to preview safety updates that still haven't arrived.

Completion of the Stafford Street project would also serve as a sign the city takes the death of a child seriously.

Candice and her mother were enjoying a day together during school break when Remillard hit them. They were obeying the rules and using a crosswalk. But they faced a more than 40-foot crossing with no protection except trusting that drivers would yield to them.

Asha Nyarki Asare, Candice's mother, was at the 2022 Stafford Street safety audit. She participated from a wheelchair due to injuries she suffered in the collision. At one point, the group stopped near the crosswalk where Remillard hit Candice. After a moment of silence, Asare made a straightforward request, asking the city to "do something" about the road.

"I do not want anyone to go through what I went through," she said at the time.