Weighing Tradeoffs between Safety and Beauty: DPW Proposes Rapid Flashing Beacons with Audible Messages on Scenic Rd through Binney Park

At their last meeting, the Greenwich Planning & Zoning commission discussed an application from the Dept of Public Works for alteration and improvement to the Binney Park loop scenic road.

The proposal is to install two “Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons” – RRFB’s – at the Wesskum Wood Road bridge pedestrian crossing.

It also includes additional striping and signage on Arch Street between Wesskum Wood Rd and Sound Beach Ave to prevent wrong-way drivers on the one-way road.

The proposal also includes adding yield marking striping and signs at two crosswalks around Sound Beach Ave, and the crosswalks at the Wesskum Wood Rd bridge.

Pedestrians cross Wesskum Wood Rd on Wednesday, May 28, 2025 Photo: Leslie Yager

DPW is not typically required to appear before P&Z, but this road is part of the .6 mile loop around Binney Pond that became a “Scenic Road” in 2020 after P&Z approved that designation in a 4-1 vote.

Back in 2020, the applicants said their goal of designating the scenic road was to have “a seat at the table” for decisions.

The scenic loop includes portions of Sound Beach Ave, Wesskum Wood Rd, and Arch Street in Old Greenwich – essentially a loop around Binney Pond.

The movement to create the Scenic Road designation stemmed from a resident uprising against a DPW proposal for a large rotary by the Perrot Library in 2018.

At last week’s P&Z meeting, Finton Sweeney, civil engineer for DPW said his department had received complaints from residents that it was unsafe for pedestrians to cross Wesskum Wood Rd where it bisects Binney Park because of speeding vehicles and crossing at night was also a concern due to lack of street lights.

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There are 2,493 vehicles per day on Wesskum Wood Rd compared to 12,000 per day on Sound Beach Ave. The posted speed limit is 25 mph on Wesskum.

Sweeney several RRFB’s were already installed on Sound Beach Ave and throughout town.

The RRFB’s are solar powered and the pole finish will be black.

Low lying plantings would be installed to create a buffer without blocking the ADA pedestrian ramp.

When a pedestrian pushes the button, the lights will flash and an audible message repeats twice: “Yellow lights are flashing.”

As for the RRFB’s and the Wesskum crosswalk, Mr. Sweeney noted there was no stop sigh for drivers traveling down the hill, eastbound.

Staff photo

Staff photo

DPW’s deputy commissioner Gabriella Circosta-Cohee said a stop sign warrant analysis had been completed, but it did not qualify for a stop sign.

In response to complaints from residents they were able to install the mid-block crosswalk.

Sweeney said data was available about how RRFB’s reduce the number of crashes.

P&Z chair Margarita Alban suggested DPW have that data ready for the public hearing.

The Federal Highway Administration website said RRFB’s can increase motorist yielding rate by up to 98%, varying by speed limit.

During discussion, Candace Garthwaite, one of the organizers of the original scenic loop proposal, said she understood the point of view of pedestrian safety, but asked whether alternatives had been considered.

She quoted the charter: “Any alteration or improvement shall be made so as to minimize any adverse impact on the scenic character of the road.”

Ms Garthwaite asked if it was possible to move the crosswalk away from the bridge to have better sight lines from both directions, and maybe eliminate the need for flashing beacons.

“I would really like to know, for the public hearing, if there are more ways to be creative and blend the scenic road character and the safety of the pedestrians?” Garthwaite said.

Ms Alban said there was a tradeoff between the intrusiveness of RRFB’s and the beauty of the park.

“It’s the intrusive nature (of the RRFB’s) that works while they’re new to you. But then you get habituated,” she said. “The point is, you initially have a huge surge in safety because they are intrusive and they get attention.”

Alban suggested DPW reach out to other towns with historic districts and scenic byways to research their best practices in similar situations.

“Is there a way to be both effective and attractive?” Alban asked. “That’s what we were going to ask DPW because we have asked them in the context of Greenwich Avenue – when we do improvements on Greenwich Ave, can we make sure it is consistent with the National Register Historic District and emphasize the history?”

Rita Baker said she recently waited for several cars to drive through the RRFB’s on Sound Beach Ave before she was able to cross.

She said that Sound Beach Ave was heavily trafficked and noisy, so the loud audible message made sense there. However, she said, Wesskum Wood Rd was “the heart of the park.”

She asked for specific data on traffic because her belief was there was 10 times fewer cars on Wesskum Wood Rd than on Sound Beach Ave. She asked whether there had been accidents there and asked for data on wrong-way drivers on Arch Street.

Mr. Sweeney said DPW had received complaints from residents of Arch Street and Pell Place that vehicles drive the wrong-way on Arch Street and they had the data to verify that.

Commissioner Mary Jenkins said the reason for the audible message was for the visually impaired who cannot see the flashing beacons.

Ms Baker said the residents who live by the RRFB’s will hear that loud audible message.

Ms Circosta-Cohee said the audible message was a requirement for ADA compliance and her department had not received any complaints about the audible messages.

Ms Baker said the RRFBs and audible messages took away from the beauty of the park and she hoped there were alternatives that also prioritized safety.

Bill Rutherford from the Conservation Commission said their concern was “safety first.”

He explained there was a path nearing completion through Binney Park so pedestrians won’t have to walk along Arch Street.

“We’re encouraging people to walk around the whole park and not just around the pond,” he said.

Rutherford said his group supported the RRFB’s because the new bridge had a hump that made it difficult to see the crosswalk.

Ms Alban said while people were complaining about pedestrian safety, they were moving to Greenwich for the beauty of the community and the semi-rural feel.

“It’s how you balances those,” she said. “One of the drivers for Binney being turned into a scenic road was that people wanted so badly to make sure the character of the community looked at least semi-rural and we heard hours and hours of testimony.”

Circosta-Cohee said the crosswalk was consistent with the Binney Park master plan.

“At the end of the day the main priority of DPW is safety,” she said.

The commission closed the application.

Public Hearing

DPW scheduled a virtual public hearing to present and receive feedback on the proposal.

This hearing will be conducted in accordance with Section 11-13 of the Town Charter, and they welcome all interested residents, stakeholders, and members of the public to attend and participate:

DPW Public Hearing Details: