By Madeline Zavala ’24
Derby, the smallest city in Connecticut, has grand things coming within the next couple of years. Downtown Derby will be introducing new businesses, apartments and roads! Although it’s something the Derby community anticipates, it hasn’t been the nicest experience driving through downtown and main street in particular. What exactly is the project that’s causing drivers a hard time on the road, and what are the people’s opinions on their driving experience?
The Downtown Derby Project, funded with $18 million provided by the Connecticut Department of Transportation, is expected to bring wider sidewalks or walking areas for pedestrians, bigger lanes for smoother traffic, and overall easier access for things like local businesses and public transportation. According to the Connecticut Department of Transportation, this project began back in 2021 and is expected to finish by fall of 2024. This is one of three transportation projects that Derby is working on. According to Hartford Business, the bridge that connects Derby and Shelton is currently under construction. There’s also a plan in place for a $25 million renovation of the Derby train station and all three of these projects have been funded by the state.
“We have all those houses going in, so there’ll be more opportunities for people to walk to get to the local businesses that are opening up, as well to get to the greenway, river walk trail in addition to public transportation and smoother traffic going through,” Derby Police Department’s Sergeant Massetti states. Massetti reassured that by the end of the project, there’ll be less backups which will make the road safer for everyone. Overall, it’s better for the pedestrians, residents and traffic, making it safer and more convenient to come in and out of town.
Although the project is going to bring new opportunities for Derby, it’s well-known that this project has brought many difficulties thus far traffic wise. “We’ve had detours and we’ve had to change two way roads to one way roads, we had to close lanes or we had to move lanes. It’s kind of a learning experience for motorists and the police as well, but everybody seems to be slowing down and realizing when they come through that they need to slow down and be careful,” Massetti said.
While I do look forward to the easier flow of traffic as well as Derby’s new looks, I can’t help but complain a little bit about how much I hate driving here during construction hours! It isn’t anyone’s fault because we need to make city improvements, but I hope I don’t have to drive the way we have been for much longer. Every time I’ve had to drive on Main Street, there’s always some sort of construction going on, which means I have to switch lanes at times, not to mention how incredibly bumpy the road is. Not only is the road bumpy but it’s confusing too. This isn’t an uncommon occurrence according to Sergeant Massetti; he says, “We’ve gotten complaints about erratic drivers, the condition of the roadways, bumps, the lane closures, the detours, traffic backups– you name it, somebody has complained about it.”
The most common thing I’ve had an issue with is driving back from Derby Avenue and coming back to Main Street, particularly the road with five lanes under Route 8. I noticed that the way the light changes on that road has been very confusing for people who are going to drive back to Main Street, not leaving it. There are four lights total, the left two lights are for the left two lanes who will turn left to merge onto Route 8 and the right two lights are for the remaining three lanes that’ll go straight or turn right. I’ve personally never done it since I stare directly at my designated light, but it’s very often that I see people accidentally run their red light. I’ve been driving on that road for as long as I can remember, whether it was my mom driving me when I was younger or me driving myself around, and I can assure that this was never a problem before. Running the red light wasn’t a problem, but after (what I’m sure are) the new light changes, I’ve seen many people from the right three lanes confuse their green light for the left lane’s light. Why? Who knows, but it can cause issues if this keeps going which is another reason why I don’t enjoy driving on Main Street.
Although I still don’t enjoy driving there due to all the detours and bumps on the road (literally), I’m very excited to see the end result once the construction finishes. It’s heartwarming to see the place I’ve grown up in slowly getting turned into something greater. There is no doubt in my mind that Derby will be in its prime again once all of these projects are completed. I very much look forward to (hopefully) not driving on any bumpy roads when I go home to visit my family once I start attending college in the fall.
The Raider Press 