NORWICH – The Common Council is taking action based on a recommendation from the city’s traffic commission to make things a little safer on Elm Street.

In response to a recent speed and traffic survey conducted by the Norwich Police Department, Police Chief Joseph Angelino handed up a recommendation that the city turn three busy intersections at Elm Street and Conkey Avenue, Elm and Francis Avenue, and Elm and Eaton Avenue into four-way stops.

For a number of years, speeding motorists have been a major concern for residents and other drivers at the southern most part of Elm Street as it’s in close proximity to Perry Browne Elementary and heavy traffic poses a risk for pedestrians, especially for kids walking to and from school. Although the number of accidents near those intersections hasn’t been very high in recent years, the potential for a serious incident is there. That alone is enough to take extra safety precautions, said members of the Traffic Commission.

“We are trying to be proactive to prevent any serious fatality and injury,” said Traffic Commission Chairman Gary Brookins. “We want to use what we know to make recommendations to keep the community safe.”

Recommendations are backed by speed and traffic counts along Elm Street. Recently, the Police Department set up its speed trailer near all three intersections in question and what data showed, explained Angelino, was the number of vehicles traveling on Elm were higher than anticipated – more than 700 over a five-day period, and it’s believed that motorists are using Elm Street as a bypass to South Broad. Survey data also showed that some vehicles were speeding in excess of 50 mph.