Picture 1
Here are the answers to the Mercer County Main Street quiz! This picture tour of other towns’ main streets is intended to better illustrate what West Windsor’s own Main Street will look like after the project is completed.
Picture 1 is West Windsor’s Main Street today:
- View: South / East on CR 571 from the driveway of the Sovereign Bank
- Speed limit / volume: 40mph / 18K (2009)
- Lanes: 2, turn lanes at intersections
- Shoulder: very wide, narrowing sharply
- Sidewalks: many gaps
- On-street Parking: no
- Streetscape: strip mall and individual commercial properties with parking lots typically in front
Picture 2
Picture 2 is Princeton:
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- View: North on SR 27 (Nassau St) from the intersection of Washington Rd
- Speed limit / volume: 25mph / 17K (2009)
- Lanes: 2, turn lanes at intersections
- Shoulder: none
- Sidewalks: yes
- On-street Parking: yes
- Streetscape: stores built to the sidewalk, houses converted to stores with small front yards, trees create partial canopy
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Picture 3
Picture 3 is Hopewell:
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- View: East on CR 518 (E. Broad St) from the Boro Bean coffee shop driveway near Blackwell Ave. crosswalk
- Speed limit / volume: 30mph / 9K (2007)
- Lanes: 2, turn lanes at intersections
- Shoulder: none
- Sidewalks: yes
- On-street Parking: yes
- Streetscape: stores built to the sidewalk, houses converted to stores with small front yards, trees create partial canopy, flags, banner over roadway, federally-funded decorative paving stones being installed with roadway repaving, high visibility crosswalks with in-street movable reminder signs
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Picture 4
Pictures 4 and 5 are both Pennington – Picture 4 shows their classic Main Street and Picture 5 shows the arterial road (SR 31) that bypasses Main Street but more closely resembles West Windsor’s CR 571. Picture 4:
- View: North on CR 640 (S. Main St.) from the church cemetery near Delaware Ave intersection.
- Speed limit / volume: 25mph / 6K (2008)
- Lanes: 2
- Shoulder: none
- Sidewalks: yes
- On-street Parking: yes
- Streetscape: stores built to the sidewalk, houses converted to stores with small front yards, trees create canopy, flags, federally-funded sidewalks, medians and bulb-out crossings being installed
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Picture 5
Picture 5 is Pennington’s arterial bypass around Main Street:
- View: South on SR 31 from the driveway of the strip mall containing Harts Cyclery near Broemel Place
- Speed limit / volume: 35mph / 21K (2005)
- Lanes: 2, turn lanes at intersections
- Shoulder: wide
- Sidewalks: complete on east side
- On-street Parking: no
- Streetscape: strip malls and individual commercial properties with parking lots typically in front
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Picture 6
Picture 6 is Lawrenceville:
- View: North on US 206 from the driveway of the Lawrenceville School near the intersection of Craven St.
- Speed limit / volume: 30mph, 25mph in school zone, 17K (2007)
- Lanes: 2, turn lanes at intersections
- Shoulder: none
- Sidewalks: yes
- On-street Parking: no
- Streetscape: school bordering east side, stores built to sidewalk and houses converted to stores with small yards, parking behind stores, trees create partial canopy, bus stop shelter, crosswalks with in-street movable reminder signs
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Picture 7
Picture 7 is Hamilton:
- View: West / North on SR 33 from east of STS Tire store near George Dye Rd.
- Speed limit / volume: 45mph / 19K (2008)
- Lanes: 2, two-way center left turn lane
- Shoulder: wide
- Sidewalks: many gaps
- On-street Parking: no
- Streetscape: strip malls and individual commercial properties with parking lots typically in front
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Picture 8
Picture 8 is Robbinsville:
- View: West on SR 33 from the turn lane into North Commerce Square
- Speed limit / volume: 45mph / 19K (2008)
- Lanes: 2, beginning of two way center left turn lane heading west, turn lanes at intersections
- Shoulder: yes
- Sidewalks: north side only, gaps
- On-street Parking: not west, but east out of picture view north side of the street only
- Streetscape: individual commercial properties with parking lots typically in front, new Downtown Robbinsville development north side of street, banners, decorative lighting, stores built to sidewalk
Rt 571 Concept Illustration
- View: cross section of street
- Speed limit / volume: 40mph / existing count is 18K (2009)
- Lanes: 2, two way center left turn lane, turn lanes at intersections
- Shoulder: yes
- Sidewalks: yes
- On-street Parking: no
- Streetscape: strip mall and individual commercial properties with parking lots typically in front, illustration shows banners, decorative lighting, new stores presumably built to the sidewalk as Chase Bank has done and Rite Aid is doing.
So which other Mercer County town’s Main Street will most resemble West Windsor’s proposed design?
Only Hamilton and Robbinsville have a two way center left turn lane in? their main streets, and Hamilton’s streetscape more closely resembles West Windsor, rather than the new Downtown Robbinsville development. So Hamilton’s Main Street (Picture 7) is what we in West Windsor have to look forward to.
Why would we want this design for our Main Street? Lawrenceville’s US 206 handles nearly the same volume at much lower speeds, and even Pennington’s arterial SR 31 handles more volume at lower speeds, and without a 3 lane design. Today’s roadway is more like the Main Streets of other Mercer County towns than is the proposed design.
Please see the WWBPA’s recommendations for CR 571, and contact our public officials to express your support for these design changes – this project is the best chance we’ll have in many years to create a Main Street that we can be proud of!
Tags: Complete Streets, Downtown Princeton Junction, Hamilton, Hopewell, Lawrenceville, Main Street, Mercer County, Pennington, Princeton, Robbinsville, West Windsor
[…] not appropriate for the pedestrian friendly Main Street that our Redevelopment Plan envisions. A survey of other Mercer County towns shows that Princeton, Lawrenceville, Hightstown, Hopewell and Pennington all have 25 – 30mph […]