Parking ban this summer?
Published on June 9th, 2004
STONEHAM, MA - The town's Board of Selectmen considered instituting a town wide 24-hour parking ban during Boston's Democratic National Convention (DNC).
Scheduled to take place during the last week of July, the DNC has been declared a national special security event by the US Department of Homeland Security. As such, virtually every major road and highway entering Boston will face some type of restriction.
For Stoneham and the surrounding area, those restrictions mean that I-93 will be closed to traffic starting at the I-93/95 Interchange, with all on-ramps to the state highway slated to be shut down hours before the start of each night of activity.
"We have to set up an emergency command center because we really do feel that we're going to have some serious traffic concerns. If there isn't a 50 percent traffic reduction [of cars traveling to Boston from I-93], we're going to have a 20 mile backup," said Police Chief Gregory O'Keefe.
Showing the Selectmen a map of Stoneham completely streaked with redlines where parking bans would be instituted, O'Keefe explained that he completely anticipates the heavily trafficked roads of Stoneham to be saturated with cars.
"We have to have a police officer on every intersection on Main Street. What happens [when traffic builds up] is the light turns green and cars are already in the intersection and can't move," explained O'Keefe. "We're assuming we're not going to be able to move very much."
Also preparing for the worst-case scenario, Stoneham Fire Chief Lawrence Lamey plans on positioning fire apparatus in four different corners of the town due to the expected vehicular standstill.
"With the projected gridlock, the Fire Department has anticipated the need to staff up for the week. The plan is to deploy our apparatus from the station to other sections of the town," said Lamey.
With Route 1, the Leverett Connector, Memorial Drive, and the MBTA also facing restrictions, the two chiefs expect the traffic nightmare to be exacerbated by commuters snaking through back roads in an attempt to return to their homes.
In addition, with road-blocking protesters and a potential terrorist attack a likely possibility, Stoneham's safety departments must prepare for the possibility that Boston will be evacuated.
"These traffic problems would happen even if there aren't any problems in Boston. We already know there are going to be people trying to block traffic. There are going to be anarchists and protestors," O'Keefe commented.
"The real worst-case scenario is if there is an incident in Boston. It's an international event and a lot of people will want to make an example," Lamey added.
Relaying more bad news, the two fire chiefs cautioned the Selectmen they plan on spending up to $42,000 in overtime funds, two accounts slashed drastically under a zero-override budget. And while Boston will receive $25 million for holding the convention, O'Keefe and Lamey said that Stoneham and surrounding cities will not receive a dime to help.
"We're kind of ticked off they haven't taken us into consideration. Their having their party and it affects all these cities and towns," O'Keefe remarked.
"Their putting outlying suburbs and towns in jeopardy. I'd hate to be a representative if a person in Stoneham has a stroke and dies in an emergency because nobody can get to them," Smith added.
While the override wasn't a major facet of the two chiefs discussion, they also touched on concerns about available staffing levels - especially given the possible reduction of 21 traffic directors.
After Selectman John DePinto asked if a resident having a medical emergency or going into labor would be able to receive transportation into Boston, O'Keefe said that while medical evacuation flights will still be available, ambulance trips into the city will prove difficult.
"Even if you're going into Boston with an emergency, they're still going to check the ambulance. They're going to search everything. Nothing's getting into Boston without it being searched," O'Keefe responded.
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