NORTH SMITHFIELD – The dead-end Old Great Road should be among the safest roads to play on in town, says John Taglione.
But drivers continue to fly down the 1,800-foot road at unsafe speeds, he said, treating it as if it’s another part of Victory Highway and endangering the lives of children who ride their bicycles or play with their friends.
A recent post by Taglione drew dozens of comments in response, he told the Town Council on Monday, June 16, showing that this issue is clearly resonating with a lot of people. He said he’s placed a number of purchased signs about children playing, the need to slow down, and there being no thru-traffic, but to no avail.
The greatest offenders, said Taglione, continue to be frequent delivery drivers from Amazon and other companies, who ignore his calls for them to slow down.
There was a time in his life when he probably would have taken matters into his own hands and done something he regretted, said Taglione, but he’s trying to do things the right way. He said this was his first time approaching the council on the matter, and he planned to continue coming back as long as it takes to get change.
Taglione said police enforcement will only be effective as long as it’s there, and then drivers will go back to what they were doing. He said there’s often pushback on physical traffic-calming measures such as speed humps, with the concern being for plows, but they’re used everywhere with no problem, including where he works at Fidelity. He added that his family is willing to invest some money in the humps as a contribution to safety in the neighborhood, adding that he hopes the town takes the situation seriously and acts.
It is only a matter of time before a negative altercation takes place, said Taglione, explaining that he moved to North Smithfield because it’s a safe community and he moved to a dead-end road because he grew up on a similar road and loved not having to constantly look over his shoulder for cars while he played and wants something similar for his children.
Councilor Rebecca DeCristofaro said speeding is pervasive throughout town, including where she lives on Pound Hill Road, asking Chief Tim Lafferty for what police might do.
Lafferty said this was the first he was hearing of Taglione’s complaint, but that they could set up some enforcement and also look into the idea of installing portable speed bumps on Old Great Road.
