Crosswalk
woes should
be gone now
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
PUTNAM — By the time you read this, the “frozen” crosswalk signals at the Bridge Street and Kennedy Drive intersection should be fixed.
Two pedestrian-involved accidents at or near the glitchy crosswalk signal brought to the forefront the mostly non-functioning crosswalk signals there at the Riverfront Commons shopping plaza. The traffic lights and the crosswalk signals are the responsibility of the plaza owners.
Sept. 25 Putnam Police investigated a pedestrian-involved motor vehicle accident at that crosswalk. A couple weeks later, another pedestrian was hit outside the crosswalk. Both had minor injuries, according to police.
The crosswalk signal works sporadically, inspiring pedestrians to try to scoot across Kennedy Drive.
Last year the traffic light there “glitched” and the plaza management company, Jcorp Realty Inc. did not fix it. So the town hired Prime Electric from Norwich to fix it.
Town Administrator Elaine Sistare said the town ordered the parts for the crosswalk signals and Prime Electric is scheduled to install the parts Oct. 29. After the company examined the two crosswalk signals, both on the river side of Kennedy Drive, they determined neither one of them was fully functional and both were damaged. She said they thought one of the signals might have been damaged by a car but the second one was definitely vandalized, probably with a baseball bat.
Usually the town bills the plaza owner for the work and if the bill is not paid, the town has the option of putting a lien on property for unpaid bills. For example when a property owner cannot pay for ordered demolition of blighted property, the town pays for the work and then puts a lien on the property.

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