Hats Off to Amy McHugh and the Highway Department

Marblehead’s new intersection has gone trés continental. I was heading to my job as a driver’s ed instructor when I noticed -- couldn’t help notice, which is the point -- the bold new crosswalks at the town’s flagship new Vine/Village/Pleasant intersection. The so-called “continental” crosswalk has wide white transverse lines with no bordering longitudinal lines. Although not required by the federal Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices, high visibility crosswalks are favored by the National Association of City Transportation Officials and recommended by the Massachusetts Safe Routes to Schools program. A new edition of the MUTCD is due out this summer, and many hope it will recommend these newer designs.

So, hats off to Amy McHugh and her team at the Highway Department for getting ahead of the regulatory curve and adopting best, twenty-first century practices. Not only are they safer for all road users, the continentals really dress up the place. Dare I say the intersection looks positively Parisian.

Dan Albert

Leicester Road